An Unexpected Dream
by RiverstormWho
Summary: It has been ages since Rose has seen The Doctor, not since he dropped her off at Bad Wolf Bay...again. However, when she mysteriously appears on his TARDIS, him with a new face and new friends, she's left questioning what is real. Is she with The Doctor on the TARDIS, or living familial bliss in Leadworth? Is it reality, or is it all just a dream? Rewrite of Amy's Choice episode.
1. It Begins

**Chapter One: It Begins**

The TARDIS lurched to a stop, landing with a thud as the Doctor bounded around the console to the front doors. He paused, checking his distorted reflection in the time rotor to make sure his hair was in place and his blue bow tie was on straight _. Have to look good wherever you go_ , he thought as he pulled the doors open and stepped out, straight into a flower bed now crushed from his TARDIS.

Oops.

He looked up at the sound of a door opening to see none other than Rory Williams, his hair long and in a ponytail (Yowzah! He was going to have to talk to him about _that_ ), walking straight toward him. The Doctor smiled brightly.

"Rory!" he shouted happily.

"Doctor," Rory replied slightly less enthusiastic, but glad to see his old friend none the less.

"I've crushed your flowers," the Doctor said lamely, almost blushing. Rory scoffed.

"Oh, Amy _will_ kill you."

"Where is she then?"

"She'll need a bit longer."

At that moment, a very heavily pregnant Amelia Pond-Williams waddled out the front door of their cottage house. The Doctor's eyes widened at the sight as he chuckled, "Oh, woh-hey! You've swallowed a planet!"

She laughed with an eye roll as she pulled him into a tight embrace. "I'm pregnant, you daft alien."

The Doctor could not keep the smile off his face. He had missed his Ponds so much, hadn't been to see them since their wedding; it was great, _amazing_ to see them again. "You're huge!"

She rolled her eyes once more. "Yeah, I'm _pregnant_." She over exaggerated the word.

"Oh, look at you both: five years later and you haven't changed a bit." He quickly checked his highly accurate time sense to make sure he was correct. Like always, he was. The Doctor continued, "Well, apart from age and…size."

Amy's smile lit up her whole face. "It is so good to see you, Doctor."

"Why don't we go for a walk through the village?" Rory suggested, putting his arm around his wife. The Doctor clapped his hands together excitedly.

"Yes, a walk! Walking is good, excellent plan. A walk through Leadworth…vibrant as ever, I see," he commented as they began their trek through the quiet countryside.

"It's upper Leadworth, actually," stated Rory, a hint of pride in his voice. "We've gone slightly up market."

"Where is everyone?" The Doctor asked, the unusual stillness and lack of people out and about catching his attention.

" _This_ is busy," Amy mumbled. "Okay it's quiet, but it's really restful and healthy." She said it kind of rushed, as if she was trying to defend her now passive life to the Doctor. "Loads of people here live well into their nineties."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes subtly at her. Was she happy here? He certainly hoped she was. "Well, I wanted to see how you were. You know me, I don't just _abandon_ people when the y leave the TARDIS. This Time Lord is for life!" he wrapped his arms around them as he moved to walk between his two friends. "You don't get rid of your old pal the Doctor so easily!"

Amy scoffed light-heartedly. "You came here by mistake, didn't you?"

The Doctor blushed as she raised an eyebrow in his direction and waited for him to answer. He caved, "Yeah, bit of a mistake. But look, what a result! Like…this bench!" the Doctor sat in the center of the street bench and animatedly tapped it with his hands, prompting him to sit on either side of him, Rory on the left and Amy to his right. "What a nice bench. I mean, what will they think of…next...?" his words drifted off into nothing as he caught a glimpse of a familiar face down the street to his left; an _impossible_ face. But the blonde woman disappeared around the corner before he had a chance to confirm who it was.

"Doctor?" Amy placed a hand on his shoulder and looked to where the Doctor was starring, seeing no one. "You all right?"

"Yeah…" he said hesitantly. "…I'm fine." He shook his head slightly to clear it. He was just imagining things; he had to be. The Doctor cleared his throat. "So, what do you do around here to stave off the…you know—"

"Boredom?" Amy offered, looking adequately bored. The Doctor swore he saw Rory frown out of the corner of his eye.

"I was going to say self-harm."

"We relax," insisted Rory, an adamant look on his face. "We live, we…listen to the birds." The trio looked up at the sound of birds chirping above their heads.

"Yeah, see? Birds. Those are nice." Amy stated dryly.

Rory yawned. "We didn't get much time to listen to birdsong back in the TARDIS days, did we?" the chirping birds grew louder and louder as in turn, Amy, Rory, and the Doctor began to grow very drowsy.

"Oh blimey, my head's a bit…" the Doctor's speech slurred as he yawned once again. "…er, no, you're right…there wasn't a lot of time for birdsong back in the good…" his eyes fluttered closed and his head was beginning to feel heavy with sleep. "…old…"

"…days. What?" The Doctor opened his eyes, waking up to find himself laying down on the console floor. "No, yes, sorry, what?" he pushed himself up off the floor as a short haired Rory and a non-pregnant Amy walked in. "Oh, you're okay! Oh, thank god! I had a _terrible_ nightmare about you two. And I thought I saw…" his thoughts wandered to the blonde woman he thought he had recognized. He shook his head. "Never mind. _That_ was scary. Don't ask, you don't want to know. But you're safe now," he fiercely hugged Amy, who was making a confused face. "That's what counts. Blimey, never dropped off like that before. Well, never really. I'm getting on a bit, you see. Don't let the cool gear fool you. Now, what's wrong with the console? He pointed to where a cluster of lights were flashing red. "I bet they mean something."

"Er, Doctor," Rory said almost shyly from behind. "I also had a kind of dream…thing."

"Actually yeah, so did I." Amy nodded and moved a step closer to her fiancé.

"Not a nightmare though, just…er…we were married." Rory blushed, but Amy readily agreed with him.

"Yeah, in a little village."

"And you were pregnant."

"Yes! I was huge, I was a boat." Amy made a face at the same time that Rory frowned.

"So you had the same dream then? _Exactly_ the same dream?"

Amy pouted slightly, her ginger hair framing her face as she glared at him. "Are you calling me a boat?"

Rory purposefully avoided answering that question by turning to the Doctor and saying, "And Doctor, you were visiting."

"Yeah, yeah, you came to our cottage," Amy said, forgetting the boat comment.

"But how can we have the same dream? It doesn't make any sense."

"You had a nightmare about us," Amy said to the Doctor. 'What happened to us in the nightmare?"

The Doctor rubbed his neck sheepishly. "It was a bit similar…in some aspects."

"Which aspects?" asked Rory.

"Well…all of them"

"You had the same dream?" Amy asked, eyebrows raised.

"Basically."

Rory narrowed his eyes. "You said it was a nightmare."

"Did I say it was a nightmare?" the doctor asked nonchalantly. "No, more of a really-good-mare. Look, it doesn't matter we all had some kind of psychic episode. We probably jumped a time track or something. Forget it, we're back to reality now."

"Doctor?" a nearly inaudible voice sounded from behind them. Amy and Rory spun around quickly, startled, but the Doctor stayed perfectly rigid. He recognized that voice, that beautiful, light-hearted timbre that made his hearts beat a mile a minute in his chest. It was an impossible voice that was sure to match an impossible face, but he was too afraid to turn around to see it.

"Okaaaaaay…who are you?" he heard Rory ask.

"Doctor, who is she?" Amy demanded, turning back to the Doctor expectantly. The Doctor squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his fists, bracing himself for who he was about to see. He turned and opened his eyes, coming face to face with the blonde-haired, brown eyed woman he never thought he would be able to see again.

"Rose," he said, barely above a whisper. "Her name is Rose Tyler."


	2. Confrontations of the Past

**Quick Note:** Hey all! So if you haven't noticed yet, this is a rewrite of the Amy's Choice episode from waaaay back in season 5. This has always been one of my favorite episodes of the show, and I've always liked to explore the idea of Rose and Eleven meeting somehow; thus, this story was born. Thank you _so much_ to everyone one who favorited, followed, and reviewed chapter one! Its so overwhelming to receive such a positive reaction to the beginning of a new story. This is one of my favorite pieces of work, and I'm glad to share it with the world. If you have any questions, feel free to send me a message, and, as you may have already guessed, I do not own these characters. Enjoy chapter 2!😉

 _"But it was. It was a better life…The Doctor showed me a better way of living your life…You don't just give up. You don't just let things happen. You make a stand. You say "no." You have the guts to do what's right when everyone else just runs away!"_ —Rose Tyler

 **Chapter Two: Confrontations of the Past**

Rose Tyler. Rose Marion Tyler was literally standing five feet in front of him. In the TARDIS!

For once, he didn't care how or why. She was _here_. He could see her, hear her, touch her. _Well maybe not touch her_ , he thought. She was petrified, not moving at all. He didn't want to freak her out any more than she probably already was.

He just didn't know it would take this much restraint to keep from sweeping her into his arms and hugging the life out of her.

 _"Doctor, who is she?" Amy asked a bit forcefully._

 _"Rose," he said her name for the first time in ages and it took all his self-control to keep from giggling madly like a school boy. "Her name is Rose Tyler."_

Rose moved her hands to her mouth as she gasped, tears forming in her hazel eyes. "Oh my…i-is it you?" she asked tentatively. The Doctor knew immediately what she meant by that question.

"Yeah. It's me."

"You…you look different."

"Good different or bad different?"

She smirked slightly, remembering the first time he had asked her that question, such a long time ago. "Just different. You still have really great hair, though."

"Some things never change, do they?" he straightened up as she smiled with her tongue poking out, her signature move that made his palms sweat and his hearts race.

She pointed to his jacket. "Tweed?"

"What's wrong with tweed?" he asked, only slightly offended.

"Nothing, it's…nice. I like the bowtie."

He smiled smugly. "Bowties _are_ cool."

She didn't answer; she was taking in every new detail about him: dark brown hair, floppy instead of gravity defying. Tweed jacket and braces instead of brown pinstripes. And that chin! Rose gazed into his now green eyes, which were currently locked on her. She hadn't realized how close they had gotten during their conversation, as if they were magnetic, instinctively drawn to each other.

"It's really you?" she asked, unsure of whether she really wanted the answer to be yes or not. She held her breath in anticipation.

"It's really me. I am the Doctor."

"But, how—"

He didn't let her finish that sentence as he couldn't stand the tension any longer. He closed the short distance between them and wrapped her into a bone-crushing hug, swinging her around as he did so. She squealed happily as he said, "Oh, I've _missed_ you Rose Tyler!"

"It's you, it's really you!" she laughed as he kept swinging her. When he finally, reluctantly, set her down, they pulled back and just looked at each other, taking the wonderful moment to memory. Then without warning, she slapped him, causing an on looking (and very confused) Rory and Amy to flinch.

"Ow!" The Doctor shouted as he rubbed his sore cheek. _The Tyler women sure pack one helluva punch_ , he mussed, thinking back to a similar slap from the overprotective Jackie Tyler.

" _That_ was for bloody Norway!"

She didn't care if she hurt him at the moment. She wanted him to know just how badly it had stung to be left on that bloody beach again. A look of sadness and guilt crossed over his face. He opened his mouth to defend himself but immediately closed it, knowing that no words would ever be enough.

"You didn't even give me a choice!" she said, her voice rising an octave. "You left me without asking about what _I_ wanted, without even saying goodbye! You didn't care that I wanted _you_ , or that I came back _for you_ , you just left us to deal with your mess." The bitterness she'd felt that day on the beach returned with a vengeance as she continued, her tone cold and harsh.

"Did you ever consider that I didn't want you to leave me on that beach? Or that I wanted to make that choice on my own? You took my choice away from me Doctor, MY choice, NOT yours, without even considering that you did not have the right to take it." She shook her head angrily. "You always do that, you think you know what's best for people when in reality, you have no damn right to make that decision."

The Doctor gaped at her and cleared his throat awkwardly as he began to fidget. "I—I'm sorry." he stammered, though he knew such a cheap apology was, and would always be, inadequate. "I thought you and him would be…er, you and me…the other me, I mean, not… _me_ , me…I thought you would be happier with a normal human life."

"I never wanted a human life, Doctor. And neither did he. You never gave _either_ of us a choice. You didn't care that we BOTH wanted to stay with you, you just abandoned us. And it made him miserable at first. He needed much more than that stationary life and he had no one who could fully understand that. Eventually, we worked through it all and I fell in love for the man _he_ was, who he became. And we were happy together."

"So it all worked out."

" **Not** because of you," she snapped. "It worked because _we_ fought for it. It had absolutely _nothing_ to do with you." Her voice softened, the anger draining from her features and flickering to sadness for a fraction of a moment. "I am not that nineteen-year-old shop girl anymore, Doctor. I am a grown woman, and I deserve the right to make decisions for myself."

"I know you do. Of course you do." The Doctor whispered as he gazed at her beautiful face. Even when she was angry at him, she was beautiful. But he could see it now; she was older, yet still as wonderful to him as the day they first met. "So," he said, trying to move on from the yelling and the anger. "Where is the other me then, eh?" he asked, looking around as if he expected the younger, half-human version of himself to walk through the TARDIS doors at any minute.

He looked back to Rose to see tears welling in her eyes as she fingered a gold diamond ring hanging on the chain around her neck. That sad expression on her face plus the tears now falling down her cheeks made him feel so guilty, guiltier than he had ever felt before. "Hey, don't cry," he soothed, wiping her tears away with his thumbs. "I don't like it when you cry."

Her gaze fluttered to the floor though his hands still cupped her face. "He—he died…a few years ago. There was an accident at Torchwood." She shook her head in frustration. "He died saving the world."

"Oh Rose. I'm sorry." he wrapped her in a comforting embrace as she buried her face in his shoulder and sobbed. "I'm so sorry."

"'S alright," she sniffed after a few minutes of crying. "He loved me, I loved him, and we both knew it."

The Doctor swallowed hard. "Good…that's good…" he thought to the ring that he previously hadn't noticed hanging around that chain. Had they been married? He frowned at the thought, then scoffed. Was he jealous of _himself_?

Of course he was. The meta-crisis got to be with Rose every day, even if only for a brief period of time. And he openly loved her, a proclamation himself had yet to be brave enough to voice.

"I'm sorry I yelled," she said into his jacket. "This is really not how I imagined us meeting again would be like. I didn't mean what I said."

"Yes you did," The Doctor stated bluntly, but with a reassuring smile and shoulder rub. "You meant every word. And that's alright. You needed to say it, and I needed to hear it."

She nodded. "Yeah…I guess you're right."

"Will you stay Rose?" he suddenly blurted. "I don't know how you got here, but frankly, I don't care. I want you to stay. Will you stay here, with me? I'm asking what you want instead of deciding on my own. See? I can change." He smiled warmly and she returned the gesture.

"That's an understatement." She chuckled, looking his new regeneration up and down. After a brief thought, she replied truthfully, "I would _love_ to stay here with you, Doctor. I have missed you."

They hugged, the Doctor longing to stay in such a position forever. The sound of someone clearing their throat drew them apart. "Oh!" the Doctor said, blushing at Amy's look of annoyance and Rory, who looked completely puzzled. For a moment, he had completely forgotten that anyone else even existed. "Introductions, of course, sorry! Rose Tyler, meet two of my best friends in the whole universe, Amy and Rory."

"Nice to meet ya," Rose said with a smile.

"Yeah, but…how did you get in here?" Rory, ever the realist, asked.

Rose's brow furrowed as she scowled. "I-I don't really know. I was at work, at Torchwood…sitting in my office…must have been day dreaming or something…and then, I dunno I was just sort of…here."

"What were you dreaming about?" Amy, who now had a worried look on her face, questioned. Rose noticed that all three of them were looking at her strangely, anticipating her answer.

"I—does it matter?" Rose asked, confused. The Doctor nodded encouragingly. She sighed. "You might think it is silly, but the Doctor and I…I mean the other Doctor… _James_ and I used to talk about settling down, leaving Torchwood. We'd retire, start a family, stay out of trouble," She chuckled, as if such an idea was absurd (which, of course, it was). "Well in this dream, we'd had a baby girl, so we moved to Leadworth to raise her. Well, _upper_ Leadworth, technically."

The Doctor blanched. "Leadworth?" he asked, eyes widening. "You're _absolutely_ sure you were in Leadworth?" she nodded.

"It's where we always talked about going. Why, is that important?" Rose didn't like the Doctor's expression. He may have had a different face, but he still held the same stormy look in his eyes. It almost terrified her.

Rory spoke first, "We all had the same dream…that we were in Leadworth together."

"How's that possible? Dreaming the exact same thing?"

A bird began chirping, steadily growing louder and louder until it was almost unbearable, leaving Rose's question unanswered.

"Doctor, you said we were back to reality, yeah?" Amy asked, slightly panicked.

The Doctor was looking up, trying to find the source of the noise that did not belong in the TARDIS. "That's what I said, yes." He sounded much less confident than when he had first made this statement.

"Then how come I can still hear birds?"

"Yeah, the _same_ birds," said Rory. "The same ones we heard in the…" his sentence abruptly ended as he, along with Amy, Rose, and the Doctor closed their eyes to sleep.

"…dream." They opened their eyes to find themselves back on the Leadworth park bench, Rory and the Doctor with their heads together. Rory's eyes opened wide and be jerked away as fast as he could. "Whoa! Sorry, nodded off. _Stupid_ , god, I must be over doing it. I was dreaming we were back on the TARDIS..."

The Doctor wasn't paying attention. He rose quickly from the bench, distractedly pulling on his braces while deep in thought. They shouldn't all be having the same dream, it was too weird. And weird was bad, really very not good.

"… You had the same dream, didn't you?" the Doctor heard Rory say to Amy.

"Weren't we just saying the same thing on the TARDIS?"

"But we thought this was the dream, didn't we?" Rory asked her.

"I think so," Pregnant Amy struggled to pull herself up off the bench. "Why do dreams have to fade so quickly?"

They were asking too many questions. Why couldn't they just let him think? He picked up a piece of gravel from the street and studied it: very real. But then again, the TARDIS had seemed real, too. _Rose_ had seemed real.

He threw the pebble back down onto the road in frustration and he turned to Amy. "Quick, Amy, answer this question precisely because this is vitally, _vitally_ important. Are there, or have there ever been, _zeppelins_ flying in the sky?"

Amy scoffed. "Zeppelins? Do you even _know_ what year it is?"

"Just answer the question!" The Doctor barked, sounding terse.

"Alright! Geez, keep your pants on. No, there aren't any _zeppelins_." She stuck her tongue out as The Doctor began pacing back and forth. "Why does _that_ matter?"

"She _can't_ be here," The Doctor mumbled, ignoring Amy for the time being. "But she can't be _there_ either. Ugh! What does that _mean_?!"

"Doctor, what is going on?" Rory asked. "And who was that Rose person?"

"Yeah, she said she had been dreaming of Leadworth, too." Amy joined in the question parade. "Is this because of you? Is this some weird Time-Lord-thing because you've shown up again?"

The Doctor frowned and turned to face his friends. "Listen to me: trust nothing," he told them seriously. "From now on, trust nothing you see, hear, or feel."

"But we're awake now." Rory protested.

"Yes. But you thought we were awake on the TARDIS, too."

Amy insisted, "But we're home."

"Yeah, you're home. You're also dreaming. Trouble is Rory, Amy…which is which? Are we flashing forwards…or backwards?" The couple looked at each other, a mixture of confusion and fear evident on their faces and The Doctor sighed. This was going to be tricky.


	3. I'm Sorry, What's Going On?

" _Do I just have a face that no one listens to…_ _ **again**_ _?"_ –The Doctor

 **Chapter Three:** **I'm Sorry,** _ **What's**_ **Going On?**

The Doctor ran down the street in the direction he had seen the blonde woman (whom he was _sure_ had been Rose) walk off, with Rory and Amy close behind.

"Doctor, where are you going?" Amy called, slightly out of breath. Maybe he should slow down. She was pregnant, after all.

Unless she was just _dreaming_ she was pregnant.

"I'm going to find Rose," he answered without turning around or pausing his stride. "She's here, remember?"

"How are we supposed to find her?" Rory spoke up. "We don't know where to look, _if_ she even lives here."

"Leadworth isn't _that_ big Rory, I'm sure it won't be too hard." Amy rolled her eyes.

"Rose!" The Doctor called out to the blonde woman standing leaning against an ice cream stand across the street. Her hair was long, longer than it had been on the TARDIS anyway, and curled, pulled back into a stylish yet conservative ponytail. The simple black trousers and white button-down shirt she wore gave her a mature, sophisticated look, a look which The Doctor found mesmerizing.

At the sound of his voice, Rose turned around quickly and her eyes widened. "You?! But you're—"

"Yes, I'm The Doctor," he said in a rush, hoping to skip the formalities and get to the point. "We met on the TARDIS, remember?"

Her eyebrows raised in surprise. "I—I thought that was just a dream."

At that moment, Amy and Rory walked up, out of breath from running.

"She's real!" Amy exhaled skeptically.

The Doctor rolled his eyes and replied, "Of course she's real," at the same time that Rose said, "Of course I'm real." They locked eyes, smiling shyly as they spoke in synchrony. Rose cleared her throat.

"Amy, right?" she asked, staring at Amy's swollen stomach. "You're pregnant."

Amy laughed. "And married," she waved her left hand, showing off her modest ring. Rose turned to Amy's husband.

"And you're Rory?" He nodded. "Well, it's nice to meet you both…again."

The Doctor was about to interrupt his friends' conversation when a little girl with curly dark brown hair and honey coloured eyes ran up and beat him to it.

"Mummy, mummy!" the girl shouted, wrapping her arms around Rose's legs and being careful not to drop the doll she clutched in her hands. "Mrs. Watson wants to take us up to the castle for a tour. Is it alright if I go?"

"Of course, love. Make sure you meet me back in the park before nightfall, yeah?"

"Thanks mum!" the girl hugged Rose tighter. "Will Granddad and Nan be coming to visit tonight?"

"Granddad has to work late tonight sweetheart, but he promises he and Nan will visit next weekend."

"Alright. See you later then. Love you!" she waved as she skipped back to her friends, all the while being observed by The Doctor.

The girl couldn't have been more than five or six, The Doctor thought, probably just starting grade school. Her front teeth were missing and she had her mother's eyes and nose. He could only guess whose unruly dark hair and insane bunches of freckles the girl had inherited: she looked just like _him_. Once again, The Doctor felt a pang of jealousy rise up in him, mourning a life he could never have with his precious pink and yellow girl.

"Her name is Aurora," Rose explained to the curious looks directed at her, though it seemed she was avoiding looking anywhere near The Doctor. "It means 'dawn of new beginnings'. We thought it was appropriate, considering our…situation." Her eyes flew to the ground as she picked at her nails, a nervous habit she'd had since she was a teenager.

"How old is she?" The Doctor asked, though it came out sounding strained, almost a whisper.

"Seven in September. She just started second grade, though she's a helluva lot smarter than any second grader I've ever known." Rose chuckled, almost sadly. "Sometimes I think she's too clever for her own good."

 _Her Doctor must have died in this dream (or not dream…whatever was happening) too_ , The Doctor thought. She was wearing that gold ring, but on her right hand instead of her left and he decided not to press the matter.

Before anything else could happen, the birds began chirping again. Amy reached for Rory's hand. "Doctor—"

"I hear them, Amy." He said, though his mind was now clouded with sleep. He stumbled to the nearest street bench and gracelessly plopped down.

"What's happening?" Rose asked, sitting herself down by The Doctor and fighting to keep her eyes open. The Doctor instinctively reached for her hand.

"Don't worry Rose, I'll figure out what's going on. Just close your eyes and we'll wake up…on…the…"

"…TARDIS." As soon as he spoke the words, he was there, leaning against the console. Amy and Rose (she was still there, to his delight!) were waking up from the two jump seats on either side of the stairs and Rory was asleep on the floor. The Doctor sprang up, immediately on high alert. "This is bad," he mused. "I do not like this." He scrunched his eyes tightly shut. He didn't know what the hell was going on and that is what frustrated him the most. The Doctor kicked the base of the console, the pain in his foot making him instantly regret it. "Argh! Never use force, you just embarrass yourself. Unless you're cross, in which case, always use force!"

"Should I go and find the manual?" Amy offered softly, trying to keep him calm.

"I threw it in a supernova." The Doctor answered with a scowl.

"You threw the manual in a supernova?" Rose asked incredulously. "Why?"

"Because I disagreed with it! Now stop talking to me when I'm cross!"

Amy just rolled her eyes and Rose frowned. It was weird; in her heart, she knew he was The Doctor, but he was so different. It was going to take a while to get used to the changes.

"So…" Rory tried to diffuse the tension building in the room. "Whatever's wrong with the TARDIS, is that what caused us to dream about the future?"

" _If_ we were dreaming about the future," The Doctor grumbled while messing with the console.

"Well _of course_ we were," insisted Amy. "We were in Leadworth."

" _Upper_ Leadworth!" Rose and Rory said together.

"And we could still be in upper Leadworth _dreaming_ of this. Don't you get it?"

"Not really," Rose said, confused. Rory and Amy were shaking their heads as well.

The Doctor sighed and rubbed a hand down his face. "I told you, trust nothing we see or hear or feel. Look around you, examine everything. Look for all the details that don't ring true."

Rose couldn't help but laugh at that. "Okay, let's see then: we're all in a time traveling spaceship that's bigger on the inside than the outside—"

"—With a bowtie-wearing _alien_." Amy chimed in.

Rose nodded in agreement. "So maybe 'what rings true' isn't so simple."

The Doctor pouted. "Valid point." He mumbled.

Rose giggled again and Amy eyed her curiously. She wondered just who exactly this Rose person was to The Doctor and why he had never told Amy about her.

Suddenly, everything in the TARDIS switched off, casting them all into darkness. Only the faintest glow from the time rotor remained. Rose automatically moved to The Doctor's side. He was pushing and pulling various buttons and levers on the console and growing increasingly frantic by the second.

"Doctor, what is it? What's wrong?" she reached a tentative hand out to his shoulder and could feel just how tense he was. The Doctor turned to face her, a look of pure heartbreak evident on his face.

"It's dead," he said emotionally. "We're in a dead time machine."

Rose's heart sank. The look of pain The Doctor was trying so unsuccessfully to hide crushed her. "Is this…is it my fault?" she asked softly so the others wouldn't hear. "Because I'm here?"

The Doctor frowned. "Why on earth would this be your fault?"

She shrugged and picked at her fingernails. "This happened when we first landed on the parallel earth. It drained all the power, remember? You said we weren't supposed to be there…I'm not supposed to be here, am I?"

His frown deepened. "I don't know. I don't know where you're supposed to be," The Doctor admitted. "But whatever is going on, I _will_ figure it out," he said adamantly. "I promise."

She smiled and nodded, looking reassured, yet still feeling a bit uneasy. He saw she was playing with the ring around her neck again and dared to ask, "Were the two of you married?"

Rose ducked her head and smiled wanly. "Engaged," she clarified. "He died before we could tie the knot."

"I'm sorry."

"You can stop apologizing Doctor. It won't change anything."

"I know. That's why I'm sorry."

"…We always dreamed of having children," Rose whispered. "He wanted a girl…to spoil, he said. He missed having daughters." She smiled sadly. "I guess that's why I dreamed up Aurora."

The Doctor frowned slightly. "Unless you're just dreaming of this," he waved his hand around, indicating the TARDIS around them. "And your life in Leadworth is real."

She stared at him for a long time before shifting her gaze to her feet. "I don't know what's real anymore." She admitted.

"Hey," The Doctor gently grabbed her chin and lifted her face back to his. "It will be alright, no matter what happens. We have each other again, and that's what matters."

Rose smiled, her eyes filled with tears and her cheeks flushed. "Doctor, I—"

The moment was interrupted as birds once more began singing, louder with each chirp. The Doctor turned to Amy and Rory, who had patiently given him and Rose their privacy and were now looking terrified.

"Don't panic," he told them. "Just remember, all of you: _this_ is real. When we wake up in the other place, _remember_ how _real_ this feels."

"It is real," Amy said, earning a nod of agreement from Rose and a squeeze from Rory's hand in hers. "I know it's real."

The three humans and one Time Lord closed their eyes and fell asleep.


	4. The Adversary

" _Don't play games with me. Don't ever,_ ever _think you're capable of that."_ –The Doctor

 **Chapter Four: The Adversary**

Amy opened her eyes in Leadworth sitting on the bench outside the town library, The Doctor beside her and Rory and Rose at her feet. Her hands instinctively moved to her swollen belly and she knew, she just _knew_ the TARDIS had to be a dream.

"Okay, this is the real one," she said as the others woke up. "Definitely this one."

"I agree with Amy," Rose offered. She stood, watching a teacher lead a group of school children, including her daughter Aurora, down across the street. "All of it feels so…solid."

"It felt solid on the TARDIS, too. You can't spot a dream while you're having it." The Doctor reminded. He began waving his hands in front of his face, watching them closely.

Rory raised an eyebrow in question. "What are you doing?"

"Looking for motion blur, pixilation." He said it as if it should have been obvious. "It could be a computer simulation. I don't think so though. What's that?" The Doctor pointed to a crumbling stone building that was two stories high. An older man was looking at them from behind the lace curtains in the window, along with a woman at a different window. Their gazes looked glazed over, almost blind as they watched the four people on the street.

"That's the old people's home." Rose answered with a shrug. Many of the residents were now staring at them through the windows, making The Doctor feel ill-at-ease.

He turned to Amy. "You said everyone here lives to their nineties?" she nodded, and he frowned. "There's something here that doesn't make sense…" he looked at Rose with an excited gleam in his eye. "How long have you been retired from Torchwood exactly?"

She raised an eyebrow at the random question but answered anyway. "About six years. When I found out I was pregnant with Aurora. Why?"

"You ever miss going on adventures?"

She shrugged. "I s'ppose."

"Are you up for one now?"

Rose's smile widened, the gleam in her eyes matching perfectly with The Doctor's. "I thought you'd never ask."

The Doctor laughed. It was so easy to fall back into old habits with her, joking and holding her hand. He _had_ missed this, so very, very much. They ran ahead to the Residential Home, followed by Rory. Amy groaned as she waddled after them.

"Ugh, can we _not_ do the running thing?" she griped. Catching up to the rest of the group, the foursome entered the lounge occupied by six or seven residents. They all perked up at their visitors.

"Oh hello, Rose darling!" a woman sitting in a rocking chair with knitting needles in her lap said. "we were wondering when you would be stopping by today."

"Hello Mrs. Poggit. Sorry I'm late. I took my daughter to the park, and then I…ran into some old friends." She smiled at The Doctor.

"Do you work here?"

"Yes, I do. Try not to sound so incredulous. What else was I supposed to do, sit around and pine after you my whole life?" her words were light and joking, but The Doctor could feel the truth behind them: resentment. Rose cleared her throat and smiled at Mrs. Poggit, though it wasn't as genuine as it was before. "How are you feeling today, Mrs. Poggit?"

"Not so good, Rose Love. The hip's a bit stiff again."

"Oh, easy; D-96 compound, plus…no, you don't have that yet, too far in the future. Forget that."

"Who's your friend?" Mrs. Poggit asked eyeing The Doctor uneasily. "Is he a doctor?"

"Yes."

"NO."

The Doctor spoke at the same time as Rory, vehemently against the former. Mrs. Poggit furrowed her brows in confusion.

"Actually…he's one of my _nurses_." Rory said with a smirk. The Doctor scowled at him, but he continued. "Still in training, ya know. Easily confused."

"Oh, I understand, Doctor Williams." Mrs. Poggit smiled knowingly.

Amy and Rose suppressed their laughter, much to The Doctor's annoyance. "So, you're a doctor now?" The Doctor asked Rory.

"Yeah, Rory said with pride. "And unlike you, _I've_ actually passed some exams!" The women didn't bother holding back anymore as they burst out laughing at Rory's joke.

"Oi! Stay focused you two." The Doctor said trying to hide his pout.

Rose could not stop giggling. "Oh Doctor, I have _missed_ all this."

 _She looks so stunning when she laughs_ , The Doctor thought. He couldn't stay mad at her, he never could. All he really wanted to do now was grab Rose by the shoulders and snog her silly.

Did he really just think _that_?

 _Bad Doctor_ , he mentally chided himself. _Rose is human, you are not. That's why you sent her away in the first place_.

It was better for her, that's what he always told himself. It didn't matter what _he_ felt, what mattered was _her_ well-being. But she had said so herself, the one man (err, Doctor?) she was supposed to spend her life with was gone. And she had a _daughter_ for Pete's sake! He vowed, then and there, once he figured out whatever was going on he would find a way to stay with Rose and take care of her once and for all.

And he would never let her go _ever_ again.

"Can I borrow you, dear?" Mrs. Poggit asked him, interrupting his thoughts. She was holding up the sweater she had been knitting. "You're the size of my grandson."

The Doctor sighed inwardly but grabbed the sweater anyway. "Fine, but I'm slightly keen to move on. Freak psychic schism to work out." He leaned in uncomfortably close to Mrs. Poggit, definitely too close to be considered civil, and narrowed his eyes at the old woman, thoroughly looking at her. "You are _incredibly_ old, aren't you?"

Rose scoffed. "Still rude, I see." She mumbled.

The Doctor didn't comment and neither did Mrs. Poggit. Birds had begun chirping and The Doctor was feeling unbelievably dizzy. He sank into a nearby chair, vaguely seeing Amy, Rory, and Rose dropping to the floor to sleep.

Back on the TARDIS, The Doctor awoke to Amy's voice. "Okay, I hate this, Doctor. Stop it, because _this_ is definitely real! Its _definitely_ this one!" she frowned. "I keep saying that, don't I?"

"It's bloody cold in here," Rory said, rubbing his arms up and down to keep warm.

"Colder than it was earlier." Rose agreed.

"The heating's off." The Doctor had climbed up the stairs and was scanning every surface in sight with his sonic screwdriver. "Put on a jumper, that's what I always do. Check the coatrack by the door."

"I'll get some." Rose turned to retrieve the coats. She paused as she spotted a familiar dark pink hoodie hanging from one of the hooks. She picked it up to get a better look at it. It was _her_ jacket; the same one she had worn when she first met The Doctor in the basement of Henrick's Department Store. Her heart fluttered.

 _He kept it_ , she thought with a smile. She couldn't help but feel flattered. Not only had he kept it, but it was hanging by the front door. As if he was waiting for Rose to run in and grab it at any moment.

She wondered what else of hers he kept lying around the TARDIS, if her old room was still around. She had agreed to stay here with him, but what would that mean for her? He _knew_ how she felt about him: she loved him, every version of him, but this version had never voiced his feelings aloud to her. _**If**_ _he had feelings for her_ , she thought, old doubts creeping to the surface. He had certainly changed; why shouldn't his feelings? But if they had changed, why would he keep her jacket after all these years? Why ask her to stay?

Rose shook her head to clear it, grabbed jackets for Rory and Amy, and rejoined the conversation.

"Everything's off," The Doctor was saying. "Sensors, core power, everything. We're drifting. Even the scanner is down, so we can't even see out. We could be anywhere." He glowered as he tried the console controls once again to no avail. "Someone, some— _thing_ is overriding my controls!"

"Well! _That_ took a while!" a stocky little man with a red bowtie and a tweed jacket suddenly appeared on the stairs behind The Doctor, startling all of them to jump. He had a pinched face a permanent scowl, even as he smiled. The intruder clucked his tongue in disdain. "Honestly, I'd heard such good things: 'Last of the Time Lords, the Oncoming Storm…him in the bowtie.'"

"How did you get into my TARDIS?" The Doctor, who had guardedly moved Rose, Rory, and Amy behind him, asked the stranger with bravado in his voice. "What are you?"

"Yes, what shall we call me? Hmm…well, if you are the Time Lord, lets call me the _Dream_ Lord then."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes at this _Dream Lord_. "Nice look."

The Dream Lord looked down to appraise his own attire. "This? Nah, I'm not convinced. Bow ties? Really?"

The Doctor pulled a bouncy ball from the bigger-on-the-inside pocket of his jacket and threw it at the Dream Lord. Instead of bouncing off him, it went right through him. The Dream Lord smiled darkly.

"Interesting," he chuckled. "You know, I'd love to be impressed, but…Dream Lord…its in the name isn't it? Spooky, not quite there…" he disappeared right in front of them, popping up right behind Rory. "And yet, very much _here_."

They spun to face him, Rose taking The Doctor's hand in hers. He could see the fear written on his companions' faces, and he didn't like it. Whatever was going on was going to stop right. Now.

"Alright, I'll do the talking now, thank you." The Doctor demanded. "Rose, want to take a guess at what that is?"

"Uhm…Dream Lord, he…creates dreams."

The Doctor nodded, his eyes never wavering from the opponent. "Dreams, delusions, cheap tricks."

"And what about the ginger and Pointy Nose here, don't they get a guess?"

Rory self consciously put his hand to his nose. "My nose isn't pointy," he grumbled.

The Dream Lord sputtered a sneer. "Well now, there's a delusion I'm _not_ responsible for. What do you think, Rose?" The Dream Lord turned to her, causing Rose to feel uncomfortable under the intensity of his gaze. "Doesn't Rory have just a MASSIVE honker? Very unattractive on a man, is it not? So's a big chin, I say." he pointed to The Doctor. "Not as pretty as his last face, if you ask me. But of course, you fancied him even when he was all big ears and leather…guess you're just into that sort of thing."

Rose blushed deeply. "I don't know what you mean."

"Oh, you can't fool me, Rose Tyler. I've seen your dreams. Some of them twice," The Dream Lord smiled evilly. "Blimey, I'd blush… if I had a blood supply or a real face."

"Where did you pick up this cheap cabaret act?" The Doctor snapped. The Dream Lord scoffed.

"Me? Oh, you're on shaky ground."

"Am I?"

This time, the Dream Lord laughed. "If you had any more _tawdry quirks,_ you could open up a Tawdry Quirk Shop! The madcap vehicle, the cockamamie hair, the clothes designed by a first-year fashion student. I'm surprised you haven't got a little purple space dog just to ram home what an intergalactic wag you are!"

The Dream Lord disappeared again, then reappeared above them on the stairs "But I digress. Back to business then! So! Here's your challenge: two worlds. Here, in the time machine, and there, in the village that time forgot. One is real, the other is fake. Its up to you to decide which is which. And just to make is more interesting, you're all going to face, in both worlds, a deadly danger. Only one of the dangers is real." He smiled a sickly-sweet smile as birdsong filled the air. "Tweet-tweet. Time to sleep. Oh…or are you waking up?"

The Doctor fought to stay awake with no success. Rose, Amy, Rory, and himself all sank to the floor.


	5. Tawdry Quirks

" _[The Doctor]'s like fire and ice and rage. He's like the night, and the storm in the heart of the sun. He's ancient and forever. He burns at the center of time and he can see the turn of the universe. And... he's wonderful."_ –Tim Latimer

 **Chapter Five: Tawdry Quirks**

The Dream Lord entered the care home lounge wearing a dark suit and a tie, an x-ray in his hand. "Oh, this is bad," he said with mock seriousness. "this is very, very not good. Look at this x-ray, your brain is _completely_ see through." He lowered the x-ray and stared straight at The Doctor, a look of malice in his eyes. "But then, I've _always_ been able to see through you, Doctor."

"Always? What do you mean, _always_?" Amy asked forcefully. The Dream Lord ignored her.

"Now then, the prognosis is this: if you die in the dream, you wake up in reality; healthy recovery in next to no time. Ask me what happens if you die in reality."

"…What happens?" Rory asked.

"You die, stupid," The Dream Lord raised his eyebrows at Rory, looking at him like he was an idiot. "That's why it's called _reality_."

Amy moved a step closer to the Dream Lord. "Have you met The Doctor before?" she pressed. "Do you know him? Doctor, does he?"

"Now, now, don't get jealous. He's been around, our boy. Just ask Blondie over there." The Dream Lord pointed his finger back to Rose, who was frowning at him behind his back. "But never mind that. You've got a world to choose. One reality always to much for you, Doctor. Take two and call me in the morning!" He vanished.

"Okay, I don't like him." Rose sulked, crossing her arms in a huff.

"Who is he?" Amy repeated to The Doctor, who had remained quiet throughout the whole exchange. He was scowling, an expression of deep thought etched on his face.

"I don't know," he answered. Rose wasn't quite sure if he was telling the truth or not. "It's a big universe."

"Why is he doing this?"

"Maybe because he has no physical form, Amy. That gets you down after a while, so he's taking it out on folks like us who can touch and eat and feel."

"What does he mean, 'deadly danger', though? Nothing deadly has happened here. I mean, a bit of natural wastage, obviously—" drawled Rory.

"Hang on," The Doctor interrupted. He stood from his chair and looked all around the room, suddenly realizing that something was different. Empty: it was empty aside from the four of them. What happened to all the old people? "They've gone. They've all gone."

Rose, Amy, and Rory looked around as well, noticing the vacant room for the first time. "Where did they go?" Rose asked fearfully. The Doctor didn't answer, instead he rushed out the care home door. Amy groaned, her back and ankles sore from all the walking and running she had already done today.

"You all right?" Rose asked with concern, placing her hand on Amy's shoulder.

Amy smiled sweetly as she nodded, grateful for the kindness since her husband had run off after The Doctor. "Thanks. So…you know The Doctor then?" she tried to sound nonchalant.

Rose nodded as the two women left the care home at a more leisurely pace. "I met him in London when I was nineteen. There were these shop window dummies that had come to life, living plastic, and they…" she shook her head with a wistful smile. "long story short, I saved The Doctor's life and…well, the rest is history."

"But there's two of them?"

Rose looked confused. "I'm Sorry?"

"On the TARDIS, The Doctor said something about 'the other me'. You called him James. Has The Doctor got a brother or something?"

"Oh," Rose breathed a small laugh. "No, no brother," _Not anymore_ , she thought. "James is— _was_ The Doctor. The same man, just different biological structure. He was created by regeneration energy, part Time Lord, part Human…it all sounds a bit mad when I say it aloud."

"Everything sounds mad when you're talking about The Doctor," Amy agreed with a chuckle. Though she wasn't sure just how The Doctor could be two people at once, she was genuinely interested in this woman's story. The Doctor had never talked to Amy about his life from before he met her, and she wanted to see if she could learn more about her old friend through Rose. "How long did you travel with him?"

"Well, time travel's a bit…wibbly—wobbly. But, if I had to guess, I'd say probably…five years?" Rose shrugged. "Honestly, it was one of the best times of my life…but that was a long time ago. He's a different man now." She had a sadness in her eyes that aged her as she spoke. "And I suppose I'm different as well."

"I guess traveling with him does that to you."

Amy could relate. Though she didn't know the full story, Amy understood just how much The Doctor could change your life. She loved her husband, and she loved her unborn baby, but sometimes she longed to be out amongst the stars in that wonderful box of his, even just one more time. There were so many more questions she wanted to ask Rose, like why she left and who was this "other Doctor" she mentioned on the TARDIS, but soon enough, they had caught up with Rory and The Doctor, standing by the playground near the old castle ruins.

"Ah, took you two long enough!" The Doctor called to them. Amy rolled her eyes, not bothering to explain to him _again_ that she was slow because she was pregnant.

"Doctor, why would they leave?" Rory asked sounding impatient and, if you looked hard enough, scared.

"Yeah, and what did you mean about Mrs. Poggit's 'nice old lady act'?" Amy added. Rose raised an eyebrow at The Doctor. He must have mentioned that when she was getting coats (or dreaming of getting coats) on the TARDIS. The Doctor simply shrugged.

"One of my tawdry quirks: sniffing out things that aren't what they seem." He clapped his hands together loudly. "So come on! Let's think about the mechanics of this reality split we're stuck in: time asleep _exactly_ matches time in our dream world, unlike in conventional dreams."

"And we're all dreaming the same dream at the same time." Rose pointed out.

The Doctor beamed at her. His brilliant Rose, always one to stay on op of things. "Yes," he agreed. "A sort of communal trance. Think, think, think Doctor…I'm sure there's something else, a tell, but my mind isn't working because this village is so DULL!" he paced madly and wrung his hands together. "I can literally feel my brain slowing down as we speak."

Rose was just about to comment on The Doctor's new-found flare for dramatics when Amy doubled over, clutching her swollen abdomen in pain. "Oh, ow, really ow! It's coming!"

Rory's eyes widened in panic as The Doctor nervously ran his hands through his hair. "Okay, you're a doctor," he said to Rory, just a hint of contempt in his voice. "help her!"

Rory, too stunned to actually do anything, could only think to reply, " _You're_ a doctor, Doctor!'

"Right!" The Doctor squatted down and held his arms out as if to catch the baby. "It's okay, Amy, we're doctors!"

Amy's squeals of pain abruptly stopped as she straightened up with a neutral look on her face. "Okay, it's not coming."

The Doctor and Rory shared a look of confusion. "What?"

Amy moved forward until she was mere inches from The Doctor's face, glaring at him with an expression as fiery as her red hair. " _This_ is my life now and it just turned you white as a sheet. So don't you call it dull again, _ever_. Okay?"

The Doctor swallowed hard, a crimson blush creeping to his cheeks. "Sorry," he mumbled.

"Yeah." Amy turned and stomped toward a swing set, Rory following after. Rose couldn't help but laugh at the spectacle that just occurred.

"I like her," she told The Doctor. "she must keep you on your toes, yeah?"

He rolled his eyes, but there was a playfulness in the action. "You have no idea." The Doctor sat on the swings beside Amy who had her arms crossed over her stomach.

He cleared his throat. "Now, we all know there's an elephant in the room."

"I _have_ to be this size," Amy huffed indignantly. "I'm having A BABY."

"No, no," The Doctor tried to hide his smile. "The hormones seem real, but no, that's not what I'm talking about…is nobody going to mention Rory's ponytail?"

Amy, who was still trying to be mad at The Doctor, couldn't help but glance his way. He was looking at her with a mischievous glint in his eyes and a conspiratorial grin. "You hold him down, I'll cut it off?"

She burst out laughing at that one and The Doctor silently cheered. Rory scoffed, trying to sound mad, though you could tell he was just embarrassed. "this coming from the man in the bowtie."

The Doctor straightened his tie with confidence. "Bowties are cool, Rory." Amy laughed again.

Rose looked on impartially, just watching the three of them interact together. The Doctor was looking at Amy with a deep fondness, and though she was glad he had found people to travel with him, she couldn't help the twinge of envy she felt for being left out. Raising Aurora practically on her own had taken up so much of her life over the past six years that she hardly had time to think about anything else. Seeing him, this new Doctor, reminded her of everything she had lost.

She missed him, _her_ Doctor, the one who had openly loved her and made a life with her. The one who had started a beautiful family with her. The one who had said 'Just one last Torchwood mission, then we'll leave for the country and never look back', then never came home.

She looked at this new Doctor and she knew that she loved him, but her heart still ached for his half human counterpart. The Doctor asked her to stay with him on the TARDIS, but would he ask the same of her here, with a child? A child, who was his in every right, but had known another father? How would she explain it all to her? What could she say that wouldn't just confuse her more?

"Rose?" she looked up to see The Doctor staring at her intently. She blushed as she realized he had asked her a question that she hadn't heard.

"Sorry, what?"

"I asked if you were all right. You look a bit pale."

"'M fine," Rose assured with a tight smile, trying her best to hide the worry from her thoughts. "I was just…hold on, is that Mrs. Poggit?"

Three heads turned to where Rose was looking. Sure enough, Mrs. Poggit was walking through the playground, up the steps toward the old castle runs. The Doctor frowned.

"I don't know about you, but I wouldn't hire Mrs. Poggit as a babysitter." His frown deepened, and his eyebrows furrowed in thought. "What's she doing? What does she want?"

The sound of birdsong left the rhetorical question unanswered. "Oh no," Amy groaned as she subconsciously rubbed her belly. "Here we go again."


	6. Emotions Burn Cold

**Sorry for the long wait between updates. real life can suck sometimes. Hope it just made all you lovely readers excited for this new chapter :) Enjoy!**

" _You know what is dangerous about you? It's not that you make people take risks, it's that you make them want to impress you…You have no idea how dangerous you make people to themselves when you're around!"_ –Rory Williams

 **Chapter Six: Emotions Burn Cold**

"It's really cold," Amy complained as they woke up on the TARDIS. She, Rory, and Rose were shivering, rubbing their arms and hands together for warmth while The Doctor fussed over the console monitor. "Have you got any warmer clothing?"

"What does it matter if we're cold?" The Doctor snapped in frustration. "We have to know what she's up to!" he took a deep shuddering breath, held it for a few seconds, then let it out slowly, attempting to calm himself. "Sorry," he pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm sorry. There should be some stuff down there. Have a look."

Amy moved as if to say something but thought better of it. She grabbed Rory's hand and hauled him down the steps to find something warm. The Doctor dashed beneath the console and began rummaging around in a tool box. Rose went after him.

"What're you lookin' for?"

"Something to fix our power problem."

She nodded. "…Can I ask you something?"

The Doctor smiled playfully. "You just did."

She smiled in return, but only for a second, as the seriousness returned to her face. "Why did you regenerate? How did it happen?"

His expression hardened. "You really think now is the opportune time to talk about this?" he asked, his voice terse.

He could hear the pain in her voice as she spoke, "That Dream Lord bloke said we'll have to face deadly dangers in both worlds. I don't wanna risk losing the chance to know."

She was scared, he realized, as he looked into her hazel eyes. He could see the well-masked fear lingering there. This must be so incredibly hard for her, not knowing what was going on or how it would turn out. Granted, he was just as scared and unsure as she was, but the prospect of Rose knowing the horrible things he had done that led to his regeneration frightened him more than any Dream Lord could. He swallowed the lump in his throat.

"I—I'm not sure I should—"

"You don't have to hide from me, Doctor" At some point, she had moved closer to him, resting a hand on his shoulder. "I've heard all your stories from James, been inside his mind. I've seen the good, the bad, and the horrific. Please know that I forgave him, which means I forgive you, and none of that will ever, _ever_ change my feelings for you. I'm not saying you have to tell me everything, just know that you can. Don't shut me out because you think you'd be protecting me."

He took a deep breath, focusing on what she had said about her feelings for him never changing. Those feelings, which he mirrored exactly, had always kept him away from her in the past, had always made him fear the inevitable pain of losing her one day. Yet somehow, she was here, and the universe didn't give out second chances lightly (or even third chances, in this case), especially to him.

Unable to think clearly, he blurted out, "I was selfish and tried to play god by changing a fixed point in time, causing a woman to kill herself to restore the timeline. I was engaged to Queen Elizabeth the First, then I kissed the Lady Christina on the Planet of the Dead. I flooded a nuclear chamber with radiation to save Wilfred Mott's life and I treated him terribly. I probably let him think I was going to leave him in that box to die—"

To his astonishment, Rose laughed. _Laughed_. He had just poured his soul out to her and she was _giggling_.

"I'm sorry," though it took a minute for her to fully stop giggling. "Sorry, I know regenerating is not a pleasant experience and you were being very open, but…you _married_ Queen Elizabeth?"

He relaxed at her mischievous smile. "Engaged," he corrected. "I never made it to the wedding because…well, 'cause I ran away."

She laughed at that and rolled her eyes. "Typical."

Taking another deep breath, he closed his eyes, all the humor in them from moments before gone. "I would understand if you don't want to stay with me anymore—"

"Don't" she interrupted. "Don't you dare push me away, Doctor. Did you not hear a word I just said?" she wove a hand through his and raised face to look at her with the other. "No more shutting me out. I _want_ to stay here with you, more than anything in the universe. No more sending me away."

"Never," he looked straight at her, so she could see the sincerity in his eyes. "I will never send you away Rose Tyler. Not ever."

"Besides," she continued calmly, trying to hide her extreme elation at hearing him say those words. "Where would I go? We're in a dead time machine."

The Doctor smiled, holding up the device he had been searching for, a combination of what looked like a whisk, a bottle opener, and a small piece of rope. "Not for much longer!" he bounded back up the stairs with vigor, Rose following close behind. "Ah, Rory, wind." He told Rory, handing him the device, and attaching it to the monitor. Rory had an unreadable expression on his face, and when Rose glanced over at Amy, her expression was the same. She wondered what they had been talking about but of course, did not pry.

"I was promised amazing worlds," Rory complained, his scowl deepening. "instead I get duff central heating and a weird…kitchen-y wind-up device."

"It's a _generator_ ," The Doctor corrected with an eye roll. "get winding."

Amy, who was standing at the monitor, shook her head. "It's not enough."

"Rory, wind!"

He did as he was told, his irritation evident as he asked, "Why is the Dream Lord picking on you? Why us?"

His question was left unanswered as the scanner came to life, revealing a strange sight. Rose, Rory, and Amy looked to The Doctor for answers.

"Where are we?" Amy asked.

The Doctor answered softly, his eyes glued to the screen. "We're in trouble."

"What is that?"

"A star, Rose. A cold star." He ran to the TARDIS doors and threw them open, the temperature dropping drastically as he did. " _That's_ why we are freezing. It's not a heating malfunction. We're drifting toward a cold sun. There's our deadly danger for this version of reality."

"So, this must be the dream," Amy said. "There's no such thing as a cold star. Stars burn."

The Doctor shook his head. "So is this one, it's just burning cold."

Rory looked skeptical. "Is that possible?"

"I can't know everything!" The Doctor snapped with a manic wave of his hands. "Why does everybody expect me to know everything?!"

"Okay, okay," Rose said calmly, trying to avoid the impending argument that seemed to be escalating from all the testosterone in the room. "So this is something you haven't seen before. Does that mean this is the dream?"

The Doctor sighed deeply and ran his hands down his face. His expression was weary and his shoulders sagged. It was the first time Rose looked at this regeneration and saw how old he truly was. "I don't know, but there it is, and we've got about fourteen minutes until we crash into it. But that's not the problem…because we'll have frozen to death by then."

All three of his companion's eyes opened wide, and it took all his willpower not to wrap them all into a crushing hug. Rose, the only one to find her voice, cleared her throat nervously.

"Okay, so what are we going to do?"

He looked at her fondly and smiled. His Rose. His beautiful, brave Rose. She had always been one to qwell her own fear in order to do what needed to be done. The weight of losing her, of finding her, then losing her all over again came crashing down on him in an instant as he realized just how much he had relied on her resolve and how broken he had been without her. Having her here now was giving him the courage to get through this and when it was all over, he was going to tell her exactly what she meant to him.

"We have to stay calm," The Doctor answered. "Don't get sucked into it, because this might be the battle we have to lose."

"Oh, this is so you, isn't it?" Rory sneered, his voice dripping with bitter sarcasm. Even Amy looked shocked at his hostility.

"What?" The Doctor asked.

Rory scoffed. "A weird new star, fourteen minutes left to live, and only one man to save the day, huh? _I_ just wanted a nice village and a family!"

"Oh _dear_ , Doctor," The Dream Lord mocked as he appeared behind Rose and Amy. "dissent amongst the ranks. 'There was an old Doctor from Gallifrey, who ended up throwing his life away. He let down his friends and—oh no," he frowned condescendingly as birdsong filled the air. "We've run out of time. Now don't spend too much time _there_ , or you'll catch your death here!"

The birdsong mixed with laughter was all that could be heard as the four freezing companions drifted into their next dream world.


	7. Attack of the Old People

" _Nine hundred years of time and space, and I've never been slapped by someone's_ mother _."_ –The Doctor

 **Chapter Seven: Attack of the Old People**

The Doctor, rising from where he fell asleep next to the swing set, immediately scanned the area in search of the strange Mrs. Poggit. She was nowhere to be seen. In fact, there was _no one_ to be seen. The four of them were now the only people left in the park.

"Where have the children gone?" Amy asked what he had been thinking, noticing the same thing.

"Dunno, playtime's probably over." The Doctor answered as nonchalantly as he could. He had an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach that he didn't want the others to know about. But Rose, being the parent of one of said missing children, was already as uneasy as he was.

"Where's Aurora?" she asked distraught, her brows furrowing. "If play time is over, she should have come to look for me by now." Rose spun around, looking yet again to the empty playground in hopes of seeing her daughter who was still not there. She panicked, as any concerned mother would. "What if she went looking for me when we were asleep and couldn't find me? Where would she have gone?"

"Doctor, what are you doing?" Amy asked, bringing Rose out of her rant. Looking behind her, Rose saw The Doctor was kneeling in the dirt, holding a doll with a purple dress.

Her daughter's doll.

She caught The Doctor's gaze, a poignant pain held there like she had never seen before. He cleared his throat, speaking softly, "Playtime is definitely over."

Amy gasped, covering her mouth with her hands, but Rose barely heard her. All she could focus on was that doll, Aurora's favorite doll that she never let out of her sight, now in The Doctor's hands.

"Where is she?" Rose demanded. She could have sworn she saw The Doctor cringe.

"I think…I don't know."

"You bring her back, dammit. You get her back to me right now!" She was on the verge of crying, but these were tears of fury, not sadness.

"I promise—"

"Don't you **dare** make me a promise you can't keep, Doctor," she hissed through clenched teeth. "Because if you can't, I will _never_ forgive you."

"I know," The Doctor stood to cup her face with his free hand, hurt tugging at his hearts when she flinched involuntarily. He didn't know this Rose at all, he realized. She was a mother and a wife, two things she could never be with him, things (he had thought) she never wanted to be. Settling down was never an option with them when she had promised him forever all those years ago. _Talk about broken promises_ , he thought to himself. But he knew forever was impossible, and the proof was staring him in the face. "But I swear to you, if there is anything I can do to get her back, I will do it."

"…What exactly happened to them?" Rory asked timidly. He didn't want to interrupt Rose's obvious grieving for her child, but his curiosity was getting the better of him. The Doctor looked at Rory like he had just appeared out of thin air. Noticing the figures approaching from a distance, he nodded his head in their direction.

"I think _they_ did."

They all turned around to see the people from the nursing home slowly making their way toward them, Mrs. Poggit at the head.

"But," Amy frowned. "they're just old people."

The Doctor shook his head. "No, they're _very_ old people. Sorry Rose, Rory, but I don't think you two are what's been keeping them alive."

"Hello Peasants!" The Dream Lord shouted from the side. "What's this? Attack of the old people? Oh, that's ridiculous!" He laughed derisively. "This has got to be the dream, hasn't it? Lets all jump under a bus and wake up on the TARDIS." His smile dropped, his voice filled with spite as he homed in on Rose. "Ladies first."

"WHERE IS MY DAUGHTER!?" Rose screeched at the little man. She would love nothing more than to punch that smug smile off the Dream Lord's face, but The Doctor was holding her back. "What have you done with her, you sick bastard!?"

"Oh, feisty that one, isn't she?" The Dream Lord said, ignoring Rose's screams. "I can see why you like her, Doctor."

The Doctor's eyes grew dark. He moved in front of Rose and put an arm around her protectively. "Leave her alone," he snarled, a threatening malice in his words.

The Dream Lord's malicious smile only grew, "Do that again, I love it when he does that. The tall, dark hero. ' _Leave her alone!_ ' It's very impressive."

"Just shut up, all right!? Leave us all alone." Amy tried to reason with him.

"Feeling left out are we, Amy? Don't feel too bad. Loves a red head, The Doctor does. Has he told you about Elizabeth the First? Well," The Dream Lord scoffed and jerked his head in Rose's direction. "she _thought_ she was the first."

"Enough! Drop it, drop all of it." The Doctor took a step forward until he was face to face with the Dream Lord. The man was a few inches shorter than The Doctor was, but he looked no more intimidated than he was before. The Doctor narrowed his eyes. "I know who you are."

" _Course_ you don't."

"Course I do. No idea how you can be here, but there's only one person in the universe who hates me as much as you do."

He saw the Dream Lord's smile weaken slightly, but after a fraction of a second, it was back. "Never mind me…maybe you should worry about them." He pointed behind them and vanished.

The four turned to where the Dream Lord had pointed to see the old people moving closer and closer.

"Um…hello?" Rory tried tentatively.

"Hello! Yes, we were wondering where you went." The Doctor addressed the growing crowd. "To get reinforcements by the look of it. Are you all right? You look a bit…tense."

Rory stepped toward an older gentleman with silver hair. "Hello Mr. Nainby." He said.

"Rory—"

"Mr. Nainby ran the sweet shop. He used to slip me the odd free toffee." Suddenly, Mr. Nainby grabbed Rory by the collar of his jacket and lifted him clear off the ground. Rory's voice cracked in shock. "Did I not say thank you?"

In response, Mr. Nainby threw Rory backward into the mud by the swings. Amy rushed to his side to make sure he wasn't hurt.

"How the hell did he do that?" Rose asked what everyone was thinking.

"I suspect he's not himself," The Doctor answered. "Don't get too comfortable here. We may have to run, fast."

Amy groaned quietly. "Can't we just _talk_ to them?"

A screeching noise erupted from the old people as they opened their mouths, revealing small, round eyes looking out. Amy and the others gapped in gross fascination. "There is an eye in her mouth," she stated, pointing to Mrs. Poggit.

The Doctor nodded. "There's a whole creature living inside her, inside all of them."

Rory, now back on his feet, pulled a face. "That is disgusting…they're not going to be peeping out of anywhere else, are they?"

As if in response to Rory's question, Mrs. Poggit and the others began to breath a stream of green gas at them. They ducked collectively.

"Run!" The Doctor demanded, pushing Amy away as he spoke. She and Rory obeyed immediately, but Rose didn't budge. The Doctor scowled at her adamantly. "What are you still doing here? I said, run!"

Rose shook her head with fervor, unwavering. "No way, I'm not letting you out of my sight."

"Rose—"

"Just shut up, Doctor! We've got more important things to do right now than argue about your bloody hero complex!"

She was right. The Doctor turned to see the old people getting ready to spray noxious gas in their faces again. The Doctor held his hands up defensively to stop them.

"Woah, woah! Wait, hold on, talk to me!" he pleaded. "Talk to me! You are Eknodines. A proud, ancient race. You are better than this." At his words, the old people (aliens?) stopped, listening. "Why are you hiding away _here_? Why aren't you at home?"

The Eknodine spoke through Mrs. Poggit, her voice now deep and scratchy. "We were driven from our planet by—"

"—Planet by upstart neighbors," The Doctor guessed.

"So we've—"

"—Been living here inside the bodies of old humans for years," he interrupted again. "No wonder they live so long, you are what's keeping them alive."

Mrs. Poggit nodded. "We were humbled and destroyed. Now, we will do the same to others!"

Rose and The Doctor shared a glance. Rose shrugged. "Makes sense, I s'pose," she said. "Could be real."

The paper boy rode by on his bicycle with a cheerful smile and a "Good morning!" He barely got the words out when Mr. Nainby sprayed him with gas and turned the poor lad to dust. The Doctor and Rose's eyes widened in shock, then the Doctor's narrowed.

"You need to leave this planet now." He growled through clenched teeth.

"We will DESTROY this planet!" The Eknodine insisted. "Starting with you!"

Rose grabbed at The Doctor's sleeve and yanked him out of harms way just as Mrs. Poggit breathed gas at him. They reached for each for each other's hands instinctively.

"It's a good thing I didn't wear my heels today!" Rose called out flippantly. The Doctor laughed as they took off running into town, the Eknodines following soon after.


	8. Running Out of Time

" _When you're a kid, they tell you it's all… Grow up, get a job, get married, get a house, have a kid, and that's it. But the truth is, the world is so much stranger than that. It's so much darker. And so much madder. And so much better."_ –Elton Pope

 **Chapter Eight: Running Out of Time**

The Doctor and Rose kept running, their foes not far behind. "So, is this the real one then?" Rose asked, never breaking her stride.

"What?"

"The real world. A star burning cold just doesn't make sense. Do you think this is the real one?"

The Doctor stopped running as they turned a corner, the Eknodines having fallen behind. Catching his breath, he kept his hand entwined with Rose's. she did not protest. "I'm not sure," he replied, not entirely sure he was being truthful. "What do you think?"

She furrowed her brows in thought for a moment. At some point she had taken her hair out of its ponytail, and her hair hung loosely in soft curls around her face. It was a soft shade of blonde, unlike the harsh, bleached colour she used to have. She was taller too, The Doctor noticed and thinner, her curves filling out into a defining muscle tone. She was so different from how he remembered her, but he couldn't believe he had forgotten how stunning she was.

"All I know is that if this is the real world, the Dream Lord just murdered my daughter," she finally answered, her voice dripping with malice. "And I hate the son of a bitch for making us choose, 'cause they both… _feel_ real. I suppose I'm not sure either." Rose sighed. She looked up at The Doctor, a soft blush forming as she caught him staring at her. "What? Have I got something on my face?"

Now it was his turn to blush. He cleared his throat and looked anywhere but at her, hoping she hadn't realized that he was quite obviously checking her out. After all the time he had spent without Rose, it seemed his hearts still belonged to his pink and yellow girl. But it had been ages for him. She had gotten her Doctor, but he was left alone and bitter, and so far-detached from the gentle love they used to share. Of course, Amy and, he admitted, even Rory had been there for him when he needed it, but he didn't realize how un-human he felt without his Rose until now. The trouble was, he was well and truly at a loss for how to tell her this.

He didn't have long to ponder on it, as Rose's grip tightened. "Doctor, can you hear that?" she asked, frightened. The bird song was back, steadily growing in volume. Not only that, but the creatures were closer now, following them with surprising speed.

"Blimey, they move fast for old people." The Doctor commented.

"So do you," she couldn't help but smile, even as drowsiness was threatening to take over. He laughed despite himself.

"Cheeky, Rose Tyler."

"Tha's me," her smile grew. "Breaking the tension with ill-timed humor." She swayed slightly, so he moved to hold her upright, simultaneously fighting off his own desire to sleep as well.

"Rose, stay awake. We have to move, Rose, right now."

"'M so sleepy," she slurred, her knees buckling. The Doctor dragged her along as pushed open the door of the first shop he passed. His head felt huge, to heavy to keep up, but he kept urging Rose forward, even as the Dream Lord appeared behind the counter.

"Oh, I love a good butcher's, don't you two?" he asked, not actually expecting an answer. "we've got to use these places, or they'll shut down. Oh, but you're probably a vegetarian, aren't you, Doctor? You big flop-haired wuss!"

"Aw, shut up, will you?! We're busy!" Rose defended, leaning heavily against The Doctor, who himself was leaning against the wall, blinking rapidly to distract himself from sleep.

"Maybe you should sleep, Rose." The Dream Lord feigned sympathy. "You look absolutely knackered!"

"He's right, Doctor," Rose slumped to the floor and closed her eyes. "I need to sleep…"

"No, Rose, we have to fight it," The Doctor pleaded, his head spinning. "If we fall asleep here, we will _die_."

His words seemed to sink in because in no time, she had pulled herself upright and was covering her ears with the palms of her hands, trying to shut out the incessant chirping. The Doctor did the same as he lead her through the back of the shop.

"Fingers in the ears. Brilliant. What's next, shouting 'boo!'? Come in, come in!" The old people were entering the shop as the Dream Lord spoke. "yes, we've got lots at steak here this week. _Lots at steak_ , get it? Are these jokes wasted on you?"

The Doctor was more focused on keeping his feet moving than answering. He had all his weight plus Rose to support, and their enemies were getting closer. With a drowsy wave of his screwdriver, he unlocked a storeroom and, with as much care as possible, threw Rose and himself inside before relocking it, praying to whatever deity would listen that they would stay safe as they slept.

o-o-o-o-o-o

"It's gotten c-colder," Amy remarked through chattering teeth as they awoke on the floor of the console room. The icy control room had a blueish glow to it, and the four companions could see their breath as they spoke.

"The four of us have to agree, right now," The Doctor said vehemently, wrapping the coat Rose had given him earlier more snuggly around his middle. "Which one is the dream?"

"It's this one." Rory answered almost immediately.

Rose stayed silent. Amy shrugged, "He could be right," she half-heartedly agreed. "I mean, the science is all wrong here. Burning ice?"

"No, no, no," The Doctor shook his head. "Ice can burn, sofas can read. It's a big universe. We have to agree which battle to lose, all of us." He looked at Rose who was shivering and rubbing her arms up and down. "Rose, what do you think?"

Her expression soured upon being brought into the conversation. She didn't want to make a decision. She had figured out who this "Dream Lord person was (or at least she had an idea), and knew whatever the outcome of choosing a world, it would not be a good one. The loss of her daughter in that world felt just as real as the piercing chill in this one. It was impossible to choose. What was it The Doctor said earlier? 'You can't spot a dream while having it?' Rose groaned softly. This whole experience was giving her a headache.

"I don't know." She whispered.

The Doctor scoffed, harsher than he intended. "That is not an answer, Rose."

She scowled at him, irritated. "Well which one do _you_ think is real then, huh Doctor?"

He tried to mask his disappointment. The Doctor was hoping Rose would choose a world, so he wouldn't have to. Whatever reality involved her was the one he wanted to be a part of. So he lied, "I think it's this one."

Rory shook his head stubbornly. "No, the other one." He insisted. The Doctor rolled his eyes.

"Yes, but are you disagreeing with me, or are you competing with me?"

"Competing? Over what?" Rose asked, confused. The Doctor blushed a deep shade of crimson and Rory scowled, staring at his fiancé. The pieces clicked together in Rose's head. " _Oh_."

Amy scoffed and shook her head with disbelief. "Men: we're all about to die, and they're busy comparing the size of their—"

"Nine minutes to impact!" The Doctor interrupted quickly, rising from the ground.

"How cold is it?" Rose asked as a distraction from the awkward conversation that had begun. The Doctor shook his head.

"Outside? Brrr. How many noughts have you got? Inside? I don't know, but I can't feel my feet and…other parts."

"I think all _my_ parts are basically fine." Rory mumbled. Amy slapped him on the back of his head.

"Stop competing!" she ordered.

"Can't we just call for help?"

The Doctor snatched the phone Rory had picked up out of the man's grasp and chucked it back in its holder. "Oh, absolutely," he told Rory sarcastically. "because the universe is really small and there is bound to be someone nearby!"

"Rude," Rose reprimanded quietly, mostly to herself, but she noticed an apologetic glance from The Doctor.

Rory groaned. "We're gonna die here, aren't we?"

"We are NOT going to die." Rose said, adamant.

"No, we're not," agreed The Doctor. "But our time is running out and frankly, I'm out of ideas. If we fall asleep here, we're in trouble." He balled his fists in frustration. "If we could divide up, then we would have an active presence in each world, but the Dream Lord is switching us between worlds. Why? What's the logic?"

As if on cue, the Dream Lord appeared behind them, straightening his bow tie. "Good idea, Veggie!" he clapped The Doctor on the back, making him tense up. "Let's divide you four up. Now, which one of you should stay here with me?" he closed his eyes. "Eenie-meanie-minie-mose, the companion I choose…is Rose." His eyes opened, and he pointed a short, stubby finger is Rose's direction. "You and I can have a little chat." He turned his sadistic gaze to The Doctor. "Maybe I'll keep her, and you and you can live with Pointy Nose and Ginger bickering for all eternity. That is, should you manage to clamor aboard _some_ sort of reality."

"Can you hear that?" Amy asked. She, Rory, and The Doctor were all swaying slightly, fighting off sleep, but Rose remained fine. She didn't hear any bird song.

"I can't hear anything," she replied, the tremor in her voice revealing her panic.

"Rose," The Doctor grabbed at her shoulders struggling to stay upright, but his head was feeling heavier by the second. This was not what he meant when he said he wanted to split up in each world, and he regretted saying anything in the first place. "Rose, don't be scared…we'll…be back…soon…"

"No, no, don't leave me," Rose guided The Doctor to the floor as he fell asleep to join Amy and Rory in Leadworth. She knew he could no longer hear her, but she begged him to stay all the same. "Doctor please, don't leave me alone."

"Oh Rose, Love," The Dream Lord's voice was low and husky. It sent a shiver down her spine as he moved behind her. "We're going to have _fun_ , aren't we?"


	9. Confrontations

" _I am the Bad Wolf. I create myself. I take the words; I scatter them in time and space—a message to lead myself here…I want you safe; my Doctor. Protected from the false god."_ –Rose Tyler

 **Chapter Nine: Confrontations**

The Doctor awoke inside the supply closet he had locked himself in, a heavy weight pressed against his chest. Shaking his head to clear it of sleepiness, he looked down the find the weight was Rose, still sleeping soundly as she leaned against him. He groaned.

Getting out of here alive just got more complicated.

 _Think_ , Doctor. He racked his brain for a solution to the growing 'attack of the old people' problem that he could hear pounding on the door outside. He couldn't just leave her here. He moved from behind Rose, laying her down on the hard floor as gently as he could.

"Okay, okay," he muttered to himself as he procured the sonic from his pocket. Searching for the right frequency, he held the tool up to his ear, listening. "Where is it? Aha!"

Once he found what he was searching for, he scooped Rose into his arms, balancing the screwdriver in one hand under Rose's head, and Rose's legs in the other. "Let's hope this works."

Giving Rose a quick kiss on the forehead, The Doctor used his sonic to unlock the store room door. In one swift motion, he kicked the door open, startling the Eknodines in the hall, and aimed the sonic at an over hanging light. The frequency shattered the lightbulb, sending sparks flying everywhere to temporarily blind his attackers. The Doctor forced his way through them back to the store front and escaped through the front door.

He needed to find Rory and Amy. Logic told him they had probably run off back to their house which, of course, was nowhere near his current location. He groaned again. "Oh, they couldn't live near the shops, could they?" he complained.

"HELP ME!"

A man's shouts caught The Doctor's attention. By the road up ahead, the old man Rory had tried reasoning with earlier was attacking a young man in his camper van. The Doctor set Rose down against a bench, promising himself that he would only be leaving her alone for a second, and ran to help. Throwing the old imposter out of the way, The Doctor pulled himself into the van's front seat. The man screamed.

"It's all right, I'm here to help!" The Doctor clarified. "We've gotta move, there's plenty more where he came from!"

The man nodded and moved to let The Doctor behind the wheel. "W-what's wrong with them?" the man stuttered as they began driving.

"No time to time to explain!" The Doctor lurched to a stop when he reached the bench where he had left a sleeping Rose a few meters away. The horrible sinking feeling in his gut vanished when he saw that she was just where he had left her, unharmed. He sighed in relief. "Quick, help me get her inside."

The man didn't question him. He scurried around to open the side door of his van and helped The Doctor lift Rose into the backseat as gently as they could. He pulled the door shut and The Doctor took off again.

"Is she sick?" The man eyed Rose warily.

The Doctor glanced in the rearview mirror, first at Rose, then to the terrified face of his passenger. "What's your name?" The Doctor asked instead of answering.

"M-Mitchel," he answered, his voice wavering.

"Mitchel, I'm going to drop you off at the church. I want you to gather as many people as you can find and barricade yourself inside. You get into the church, lock the doors, and don't let anyone over eighty inside, do you understand?" The Doctors tone was firm, leaving no room for argument or discussion.

Mitchel nodded. "I understand…b-but what are y-you going to do?"

The Doctor's eyes once again flitted to his Rose, sleeping in the seat behind him. His resolve steeled.

"I'm going to choose."

o-o-o-o-o-o

"Poor Rose," The Dream Lord mock pouted. Rose was sitting on the frosted ground next to The Doctor, brushing the flurries from his hair. There was a layer of frost on every surface now. Rose was shivering violently; she could hear her teeth chattering and see flurries of ice forming on her eye lashes. "He always leaves you behind, doesn't he?"

Rose was trying to ignore him. Maybe if she didn't respond, he would leave her alone. Maybe he would get bored of her and let her wake up with The Doctor in the village. "All alone in the dark…" The Dream Lord was saying. "Well, alone in a _different universe_ , technically—"

Rose couldn't help herself. "Shut up." She snapped. Her gaze never lifted from The Doctor on the ground.

The Dream Lord continued, satisfied that he had gotten a response from his victim. "And he never apologizes—"

"He apologizes _plenty_ ," defended Rose. "But it doesn't matter, because he doesn't have to. Not to me."

"Is _that_ the lie that makes yourself feel better?" he snorted. She ignored him. "And now he's left you again, here with me. Spooky-old, not-to-be-trusted me," The Dream Lord disappeared and reappeared almost instantly, now leaning across the jump seat in front of Rose. Instead of tweed he was now wearing black silk pajamas open down to the navel with a red sash across its middle. He leered at Rose suggestively. "Anything can happen."

This time it was Rose's turn to mock him as she laughed at his attire and his ridiculous suggestions. He didn't really think _seducing_ her would work, did he? She got to her feet, crossing her arms (partially in defiance, partially because it was freezing). Her eyes narrowed as she glared at him. "If you think The Doctor left thinking I couldn't hold my own against someone as pathetic as _you_ , then you really don't know him at all, do you?"

Unfazed, the Dream Lord raised an eyebrow. "But _you_ do, then? Is that what you think you are? The one girl in the universe to whom The Doctor would tell everything?"

Rose stood tall and unwavering. "YES," she answered confidently.

He laughed again, a sharp, harsh sound. "Oh, Rose! Poor, little Rose. You _can't_ think _you_ are the only person The Doctor has ever loved. _You_? Did you even see Amy?" The Dream Lord pulled her upper arm roughly toward him, his face mere inches from hers. She could feel the heat of his foul breath as he spoke.

"Your life is an insignificant blimp in the infinite lifespans of the universe. You are nothing, _especially_ compared to him. How many times does he have to leave you behind for you to understand that?"

"Stop it," Rose demanded, but the Dream Lord could hear the slight waiver in her voice. No matter her resolve, old fears and doubts were hard to shake. She was, after all, only human. This spurred him on.

"He didn't even say _goodbye_ , Rose! He just left you, abandoned you to clean up his mess! With an imposter, no less!"

She struggled to break free, but his grip was too strong. "Just shut up!" Rose yelled at him, but it was no use.

"But _he_ left you too, didn't he?"

She froze. He was talking about James, her human Doctor. "Don't you DARE—"

"—Couldn't even bother to live long enough to give you that 'normal human life' he promised you! Pathetic. There's just no luck for you in the 'Doctor' department, eh? At this point, you're just better off without him don't you thi—"

"ENOUGH!" Rose couldn't stand listening to him any longer. Wrestling free of his grip, she pushed against the Dream Lord, causing him to stumble slightly. His face was a mixture of surprise and amusement, as if this was the reaction he was waiting for all along. "That's enough! Your tricks and your lies will not work on me, Dream Lord. I do NOT fear you!" Her voice had grown low and menacing, and though they were roughly the same height, her presence loomed over the Dream Lord as she spoke. "I _know_ what you are."

There was a golden glow in her eyes and the Dream Lord could see a frightful amount of power held in them. It may have just been his imagination, but he could have sworn he heard the howling of a wolf.

His step faltered, fear creeping into his eyes ever so slightly. Adamant to keep the upper hand, the smile returned to his face and he shook his head in nonchalance. "Maybe it's better, Rose," The Dream Lord continued as if nothing had happened. The threatening glow was slowly vanishing from Rose's eyes as well. "Maybe it's better than loving and losing The Doctor."

Rose blinked several times, her mind slowly clearing. She said nothing, turning away from him as pinpricks of tears stung her eyes.

"You may not be afraid of me, but you are afraid of being left all alone. Pick a world, Rose Tyler. Choose, and this nightmare will all be over. He'll listen to you; you know he will. He's waiting for _you_ to decide. The Doctor's Rose…Rose's choice."

Rose huffed, seeing her breath fog in front of her. "Go to hell." She called over her shoulder.

The Dream Lord chuckled darkly and whispered directly in her ear, "I'll meet you there, Love."

Then he disappeared. "Wait!" Rose called, but it was too late. He was gone. She was all alone in the freezing TARDIS. She sunk down where The Doctor and his friends slept, curling up next to the former. "Oh Doctor," she whispered, a whimper in her voice. "Hurry back."

o-o-o-o-o-o

"It's make up your mind time in both worlds." The Dream Lord, who had popped up next to Rose in the back of the camper van, told The Doctor.

The Doctor glared at the shorter man through the rearview mirror. His imagination was running rampant regarding what the Dream Lord had gotten up to on the TARDIS with Rose, and his anger flared. He tightened his grip on the steering wheel and focused on the road ahead, trying to quell his temper.

"Fine," The Doctor snapped. "I need to get to my friends."

" _Friends_?" The Dream Lord sounded incredulous. "Is that the right word for the strays you acquire? Friends are people you stay in touch with. _Your_ friends never see you again once they've grown up…or moved on," The Dream Lord brushed a strand of hair behind Rose's ear. "What was his name? James? Better than _Doctor_ , anyway. Besides, the old man prefers the company of the young, does he not?"

Before he could retort, The Dream Lord vanished, and the camper van had arrived at Amy and Rory's cottage home. The place was surrounded by Eknodines attacking and trying to get inside.

A gasp from the backseat caught his attention. Rose was awake, sitting up and rubbing her eyes.

"Rose!" The Doctor shouted, relieved she was finally awake. He climbed over the back seat to sit beside her, taking her face in his hands. His eyes darkened. "Are you all right? Did he hurt you?"

She shook her head as best she could, covering his hands with her own. "No. he's an arrogant twat who doesn't know when to shut up, but other than that, 'm fine."

The Doctor smiled. His resilient Rose. He gave her a quick kiss on her lips and she blushed.

"What was that for?"

He rested his forehead against hers and closed his eyes. "I missed you," he earnestly admitted. "I'm glad you are all right."

Rose's heart fluttered. "I missed you, too." She pulled back from him so that he was looking right at her. Their hands, now in her lap, remained clasped. "We don't have much time. We have to pick a world, and soon."

The Doctor nodded solemnly. "I know, but we have to save Rory and Amy first."

"Save them?"

The crashing of broken glass sounded, drawing Rose's attention to the cottage next to them. The cottage that the creepy, one-eyes alien old people were trying to break into. Rose assumed Amy and Rory were inside.

"Oh…brilliant."

"C'mon then," The Doctor readied himself to open the camper van door, giving Rose's hand a tight squeeze. "Run!"


	10. Time to Choose

" _When you run with the Doctor, it feels like it will never end, but however hard you try you can't run forever. Everybody knows that everybody dies, and nobody knows it like the Doctor. But I do think that all the skies of all the worlds might just turn dark if he ever,_ for one moment _, accepts it."_ —River Song

 **Chapter Ten: Time to Choose**

Rose's hand never left The Doctor's as they tumbled from the van to the cottage, shoving any aliens that got in their way to the side. A ladder leaned against the front of the house; it looked to The Doctor like Rory had been patching up the roof at some point. He pushed Rose to the ladder and told her to climb, knocking Mrs. Poggit out of the way as he did so.

"Quickly!" he told her. She obeyed, and he followed soon after. As she made it to the top rung, Rose reached out and pushed the top floor window open. She screamed as what appeared to be a plush teddy bear was hurled at her head.

"Stop!" she warned Amy, who had brandished another stuffed weapon and was preparing to throw it. "Don't shoot! It's us!"

Amy lowered her arm, instinctively covering her belly as she relaxed. Rose and The Doctor entered what looked like a nursery as Amy frowned at The Doctor. "We _have_ a door, ya loon!"

"Sorry we're late! We had to stop off at the butcher's." he winked at Rose who just rolled her eyes.

"What are we going to do now?" Rory asked. The Doctor noticed he had chopped off his ponytail for some reason, but he didn't ask why. He just shook his head.

"I don't know…I thought…" he glanced sideways at Rose and swallowed hard. "I thought maybe the freezing TARDIS was real, but now I'm not so sure."

"Oh!" Amy cried, clutching her stomach and breathing hard.

"Amy, what's wrong?" Rose asked. She rubbed comforting circles on her back as her husband helped her to the floor. Amy groaned.

"Oh _no_. I think the baby's coming."

"Honestly?" Rory raised his eyebrows.

Amy whipped her head in his direction, a murderous glint in her eye. "Would I make it up at a time like this!?"

"Well you do have a history of…" he stopped as Amy's glare deepened. "…being very lovely."

"Just breath, Amy." Rose said, holding her hand. A crash and a growl sounded from outside, making the group jumped. There were twice as many Eknodines as there had been before, and they were getting closer. "Doctor?"

The Doctor, who had been lost in his thoughts, stood. "Right, yes! Okay, before…" he gestured to Amy gracelessly. "… _that_ happens…we need to decide, _right_ now, which reality—"

"Doctor, look out!" Rose suddenly shouted. Mrs. Poggit had made her way up the porch roof and was climbing through the window.

What happened next raced by in a blur. The Doctor, who had his back to her, spun to see the old woman just inches away from him. Before he had a chance to process what was happening, Mrs. Poggit was opening her mouth, a green gas forming there. He instinctively stepped back, though he knew it wouldn't really do him any good; he'd seen how far these creatures could reach in their attack. His hearts stopped, and he hoped more than anything in the universe that _this_ really was the dream world.

But the blow he felt wasn't from poisonous gas; a push to his side knocked him off his feet. He vaguely saw Rory shove Mrs. Poggit back out the window with a broom handle and lock it as The Doctor tumbled to the ground. A sharp gasp beside him cleared his head, and he looked to see the force that had winded him.

Rose. Rose was laying beside him, gasping in pain, and he realized what must have happened.

"Rose!" In an instant he had shot up and pulled her into his arms. "No! what did you do!?"

"I—I had to keep you safe," she brought her hand up to his face, her thumb caressing his cheek. "My Doctor." Her eyes closed. Her eyes closed as a tear rolled down her face. "I-I'm sorry…I…really w-wanted to stay with you."

"No, please," The Doctor was pleading. There were tears forming in his eyes as well. This could not be happening. Not now, not again. She couldn't leave him again, not after everything they had been through. "Please, I'm not ready. _Please_ …don't go."

Neither one wanted to let go of the other. The Doctor panicked when he heard her heartbeat accelerating rapidly beneath him, and her breaths start to leave her in panicked pants for air. She was fighting to stay with him, her beautiful face creased into a painful frown. She tightened her grip around him as her muscles began to tremble. She couldn't fight the inevitable for long. He could feel her slipping away.

"'S not your fault," she told him, her voice fading. "Remember, it w-wasn't your…"

She never got a chance to finish her sentence. The poison had enveloped all of her, turning her fragile form into dust. All that remained of his wonderful Rose now slipped through his fingertips.

The Doctor stared at the dust covered floor in shock. He couldn't move. He vaguely heard Amy crying, and he thought Rory asked him a question, but he couldn't be sure. The only thing he could focus on were his empty arms where his Rose used to be. It wasn't supposed to end this way. This was supposed to be their second chance. He had promised her.

He felt Amy reach a tentative hand to his shoulder and give it a light squeeze. "Doctor—"

His head snapped up to face her and she recoiled at his harsh gaze. He was in pain, grieving, and his eyes were lifeless. It broke Amy's heart to see him this way. She couldn't even imagine what that pain felt like. A quick glance to Rory told her that she would most likely be a wreck too.

"I—" she didn't know what to say exactly. She'd never had to comfort someone like this before, let alone The Doctor. "I am so sorry, Doctor."

"She's gone," was all he said, his expression vacant.

"You—you can't save everyone," she whispered delicately. "Not always. I'm sorry."

His vacant expression grew hard, menacing. Amy could see darkness overcloud him and she had to admit, the look was a bit frightening.

"Then what is the point of me?"

He sounded so broken, so lost; like a child. It broke her heart.

"Doctor—"

He stood abruptly, cutting off her platitude. His shoulders were rigid. His fists were clinched. His mind was made up.

"This is the dream," he determinedly decided. "Definitely this one."

Rory and Amy stole a look with each other, worry evident in their expressions.

"We have to be sure—"

"I AM SURE, AMY!" he shouted forcefully. Both his companions jumped. "I am sure that this CAN NOT be the way she dies, this CAN NOT be the end of Rose Tyler! She _always_ finds her way back!" he looked to the pile of dust on the floor; all that was left of her in this reality. His anger slowly dissolved until all he felt was tired. "Always."

There was silence. Rory and Amy had never seen their friend so emotional before. Rory took his wife's hand and gave it a squeeze, her other hand resting on her stomach. They new what they would be risking, but they trusted The Doctor. Whatever chance they had of getting out of this alive were increased exponentially if they followed him.

Rory cleared his throat. "Okay, then. So, if we die here, then we wake up, right?"

"Unless we just die," Amy mumbled. What they were about to do was terrifying and she hoped with all of her being that The Doctor was right.

" _This_ is the dream." The Doctor repeated resolutely.

"But how do you know?"

"Because if _this_ is real life, then I don't want it."

Amy looked to Rory, his face as solemn as hers must have been. "So, what do we do?"

The Doctor neglected to answer. He barreled down the stairs, out the door, past the waiting Eknodines. He barely stopped to see if his friends were following him. They made it to the camper van unscathed, as the old people had stopped attacking. _Probably because this is the dream_ , The Doctor thought.

 _Or because they knew what he was about to do_.

Amy and Rory had climbed in the van after him, all three of them crammed into the front seat. The Doctor retrieved the keys from his coat and was about to start it up when—

"Wait!" Amy's hand covered his, stopping him. "Doctor, are you sure? Look, I get it. If I lost Rory…" she shook her head, not even wanting to think about _that_. "But I need you to be _absolutely_ sure, Doctor. This could be the real world."

"It can't be," he promised tersely. "I know it can't."

"Okay," Amy sighed, nodding her head in reassurance. "Okay." She may have been ready to do this, but it didn't make doing it any easier. She closed her eyes, wrapped her arms around Rory, and said, "Let's get this over with."

The Doctor didn't hesitate. As soon as the engine roared to life, his foot hit the gas and the van sped forward, toward the cottage.

The trio braced themselves for impact as they sped straight into the brick wall, and everything went black.


	11. Everything Ends

" _[Rose Tyler], I could save the world, but lose_ you _."_ —The Doctor

 **Chapter Eleven: Everything Ends**

Four pairs of eyes fluttered open one after the other in the frost ridden TARDIS console room. The bitter cold temperature slowed their movements, but they were all awake. All breathing.

All alive.

That's what The Doctor first noticed as he came to. He could feel Rose's heart beating against him. She had fallen asleep with her head resting against his chest and her cold hand in his. The wave of relief that rushed over him warmed him to the core. He was right. She was here. She was alive, they all were.

"Doctor?" her voice was soft, but it rumbled through his chest. He smiled and sat up, pulling her into a warm embrace. "How—what happened? How did we get back here?"

"Oh _Rose_ ," he breathed into her hair as he kissed the top of her head. He elected not to answer, but to revel in how lucky he was to have her back with him. "It doesn't matter. We're _alive_."

An all-too familiar voice pierced through the air as the Dream Lord stood atop the stair case, looking forlorn. "So, you chose this world. Well done. You got it right," He checked the watch at his wrist. "and with only seconds left. Well, fair is fair. Let's warm you up."

With a snap of his fingers, the TARDIS powered back to life, all functions restored, including the shields and the heat.

"I hope you've enjoyed your little fictions," The Dream Lord continued. "It all came from your imaginations, so I'll leave you to ponder on that. I have been defeated. I shall withdrawal. Farewell." With that, the Dream Lord vanished for the last time.

The Doctor frowned. ' _Imaginations'_? The truth hit him like a ton of bricks. Of course! How could he have been so thick? How had he not realized it before?

"Is that it then? Are we safe?" asked Amy, her arms around her fiancé.

"Good riddance," Rory practically spat.

"So…" Rose asked her question slowly, not quite sure she wanted to hear the answer. "what are we doing now?"

The Doctor jumped to his feet, pulling Rose with him. "Me? I'm going to blow up the TARDIS."

The humans in the room all widened their eyes "What!?" they shouted in unison.

"Notice how 'helpful' the Dream Lord was?" The Doctor explained. "Sure, there was some misinformation, red herrings, malice, and I could have done without the bad poetry, but he was always very keen to make us _choose_ between dream and reality." He was moving rapidly around the console, pushing and pulling different levers and such with fervor.

"What are you doing?" Amy asked, concerned.

"Doctor, the Dream Lord conceded," Rory tried to explain. " _This_ isn't a dream."

The Doctor insisted, "Yes, it is!"

"Doctor—" Rose tried to speak her troubles with his plan but was interrupted by a frantic Amy.

"Stop him!"

"Star burning _cold_?" The Doctor sneered. "Pft! Give me a break!"

Rose amplified her voice, "Doctor—"

"The Dream Lord has no power over the real world!"

"DOCTOR!"

Her shouts finally caught his attention and he stopped his task to look at her. She looked sad, defeated. Realization caught up with him as he realized the implications of what he was about to do. If this was all a dream, all from his imagination, then— _oh_.

" _Trust nothing you see, hear, or feel."_

He should have known.

His hearts sank. "Rose—"

"I know who he is, Doctor."

He doubled back in surprise. He wasn't expecting her to say that. "You do?"

Tears formed in her eyes, a reoccurring theme in this adventure. "' _Only one person in the universe who hates me as much as you do_?'" she quoted what he had told the Dream Lord earlier in Leadworth. "I told you, I've heard all your stories, Doctor. I figured it out."

The Doctor's mouth hung open dumbly. He saw Rory and Amy staring at him intently. He swallowed hard, his next words painful to say. "Rose, if you know who he is…then you know…" he gestured all around them. "this can't be real."

"So, what happens to me, then?" she asked the dreaded question. "If you blow up the TARDIS and we go back to 'reality', what happens to me? Where will I go?"

"…I don't know."

But he couldn't fool her, not even for a second. He never could. "Don't you lie to me." She ordered. "You _promised_."

He winced. "…You know who the Dream Lord is…so you know why you can't be here, with me."

That was the biggest blow of this whole debacle. He had been naïve in thinking she could stay with him, honestly. The universe was never that kind, especially, as he should have learned by now, not to him. Of course, Rose realized this too, deep in her heart, but her head couldn't accept that this was their fate.

"But…I can't! Not now, not when we just found each other again. 'S not fair!"

The Doctor was solemn. "It never is."

She closed the gap between them, clasping both his hands. "I don't _want_ to leave you."

The Doctor smiled, but it felt forced (which, of course, it was). He squeezed her hands. "You won't be, Rose. Don't you see? If I do this, the worlds go back to normal. You'll be with James again."

"What if I'm not?" she insisted. He let out an exasperated groan, removing his hands from hers to rub them down his tired face.

"Rose—"

"What if I'm all on my own? What if he's not there, and I possibly have to raise a child, _our_ child, all alone?"

"Rose, stop it—"

"What if he actually _is_ dead? Or what if _I'm_ dead and this is all some sort of psychotic nightmare from hell—"

"I said stop it! Just stop!" he shook her shoulders to end her ranting. He couldn't take it anymore. He took a shaky breath but didn't bother denying her statements. The truth is, he simply didn't know _what_ Rose would be going back to when they woke up. There was no way for him to check how far along Rose was in her personal timeline, but the thought of her not returning at all bothered him more than he cared to admit. "Rose, I—" his voice cracked in sorrow. "I _have_ to."

The silence was deafening. She wasn't looking at him; she stared at her feet. His hands were still on her shoulders and he could feel her take a deep breath.

"Then I don't care," she said, her words barely audible. The Doctor frowned. Rose lifted her hazel gaze to his green and explained, "I don't care if this is a dream, I don't care if we wake up a whole universe apart…I promise you, I will remember this. I will remember you. Because I love you. I have always loved you, I will _always_ love you. Forever." His smile reappeared, still sad, but it reached his eyes all the same.

Rose continued, "So whether I wake up with him, or here with you…whether you have one heart or two…pinstripes or bowties..." he chuckled, and she grinned softly, their foreheads pressing together. "I. Love. You. My Doctor."

His hand reached under her chin, gently pulling her face to meet his, and kissed her soundly. He wished he could make time stop. He wished this wasn't a dream. He wished forever could be possible with her. He wished…he wished for a _life_ with his Rose.

All too soon, their kiss ended, the pair slowly separating. The Doctor's eyes were shut tight, his voice full of turmoil. He choked, "Oh, Rose…"

"Shhh," she soothed, wiping the fallen tears that had formed from his cheeks. "It's all right, Doctor," she told him, her voice soft and reassuring. "I know."

She was crying now too, The Doctor could see, as he opened his eyes. Her mascara left inky trails down her cheeks and her arms clung tightly around his waist. He took the moment to look at her, really, properly look at her.

This is how he wanted to remember her. The strong, oh so strong young woman who holds her head up high not only for her own sake, but for his. He wanted to memorize every feature, every curve. For he knew, deep in his hearts, he would never get another chance to see her again. There was so much left to say, so much he wanted…

"My beautiful Rose," he whispered to her brokenly, brushing strands of hair behind her ear. These words were hers; only hers. He swallowed painfully, his voice strained with his own tears. He leaned in close, "I hope you understand…it wasn't enough. I never said—" he took a deep breath, steeling himself to say what _needed_ to be said. "I never said _I love you_ because it is just simply not enough."

She gasped through her tears, a strangled yet happy sound. "I know," she repeated.

The Doctor kissed her again, a short, chaste kiss, and mustered a small strained smile.

Leaning her head on his shoulder, Rose reminded herself over and over again that even if she wasn't with him when they woke up, he wouldn't be alone. She saw Rory and Amy were holding each other and watching their whole exchange with trepidation. Yes, he would be with someone, even if he couldn't be with her. The thought only brought her a small comfort as she clung to him, like tightening her hold on her beloved would keep him from being ripped from her life once more.

Without moving apart, The Doctor reached to push a button on the TARDIS console, and the world around them shattered into ash.

And she was gone.

 **Thank you so much for all the wonderful comments everybody! We're nearing the end here. Chapter 12 will be the last, with a possible epilogue as well. Stay tuned, lovelies!**


	12. Rose

" _Well, I've seen a lot of this universe. I've seen fake gods and bad gods and demi-gods and would-be gods. I've had the whole pantheon. But if I believe in one thing... just one thing... I believe in her!"_ –The Doctor

 **Chapter Twelve: Rose**

The frost and the cold were gone as everything reset back to normal. Amy stood with Rory at the foot of the stairs, his arms still tightly wrapped around her waist. She watched The Doctor, who stood in the middle of the console room inspecting small yellow specks of some sort in the palm of his hand. He looked up to smile at them.

"Any questions?" he asked with a smirk.

Amy resisted rolling her eyes. Of course! She had a _million_ questions! This nightmare was the strangest thing she had ever experienced, and she couldn't help but notice they were one person short again. What the hell had just happened? What exactly had happened to Rose?

"Err, what's that?" asked Rory, about the strange pollen-like substance in The Doctor's hand, before Amy could begin her bombardment of questions.

"A speck of Psychic Pollen from the Candle Meadows of Karass don Slava." The Doctor explained. "Must have been have been hanging around for ages. Fell in the Time Rotor, heated up, and induced a dream-state for all of us." He went to the TARDIS doors and pulled them open, scattering the psychic pollen into the vast darkness of space. He wiped his hands clean of the stuff and shut the doors.

"So that was the Dream Lord then? Those little specks?"

The Doctor frowned at Rory's question. "No, no. No…sorry, wasn't it obvious?" he clarified at the sight of his friend's blank stares. "The Dream Lord was _me_. The Psychic Pollen is a mind parasite. It feeds on everything dark in you, gives it a voice, turns it against you. I'm nine hundred and seven. It had a lot to go on."

"But why didn't it feed on us, too?" Amy wondered aloud.

"The darkness in you pair?" The Doctor chuckled lightly. "It would have starved to death in an instant. I choose my friends with great care!" He winked at them. Rory, though, still wasn't satisfied.

"So, none of it was real then?"

"Technically, no."

"…Was _she_ real?"

Amy felt a chill return to the room with that question. The smile on The Doctor's face was now strained, but he ignored the question.

"Rory," he placed his hands on the younger man's shoulders. "Right now, something important is about to occur to Amy. And seeing as what she has to say will change your life, I think you should give her your full attention."

Both Amy and Rory looked confused, but The Doctor's reassuring nod to Amy made her realize that, of course, he was right.

"Yeah, actually, yes! I do have something I need to say."

'There it is," The Doctor snapped his fingers, simultaneously stepping out of the way of his two best friends and their pending conversation.

Amy had taken Rory's hand in hers, steeling her nerves for what needed to be said. "Rory, I…I love you."

Rory scoffed slightly. "Is that it?"

Amy scowled. "Will you shut up and let me finish?"

Rory blushed, shut his mouth, and nodded.

"…I love you, Rory. And I can't _wait_ to marry you. I didn't know before, I didn't, I honestly didn't know what to choose, but what happened in that dream…" she paused. The Doctor looked away at the mention of Rose's 'death'. "After that, I was sure that I definitely couldn't live without you. And I'm sorry that I ever made you doubt. I _have_ chosen. _Of_ _course_ , I've made my choice."

Still there was insecurity in Rory's eyes, and Amy smacked him in the gut for obviously not listening to a word she said.

"It's YOU, stupid!"

"Oh, right!" Rory laughed in relief. "Thanks."

Amy giggled with him, but she knew she had more to get off her chest as well. She grew serious once more. "Crashing that van; I didn't know that we wouldn't just die, and I was terrified…but you were there, with me. And I knew whatever happened, I would be safe with _you_. Together," she smiled, happy tears forming in her eyes. "or not at all."

Rory passionately kissed his wonderful fiancé, making The Doctor smile. He clapped his hands together loudly, breaking the couple apart.

"So! Where to now? Or should I pop down to the swimming pool for a few lengths?"

The pair laughed. "I dunno, any where's good for me," said Rory. "Amy can choose."

She kissed him on the cheek. "First things first: I'm going to freshen up, maybe take a nap, then we can go somewhere. Maybe the moon," she bounded up the stairs with excitement. "Or Rio!"

"Rio it is then!" The Doctor agreed. Amy winked, turning to leave. Both The Doctor and Rory watched as she made her way out of the console room. The silence was thick, neither man knowing exactly what to say to the other, if anything. Rory cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Well…I should probably go after her." Pushing himself off the console where he had been leaning, he turned with an awkward wave. "Goodnight, Doctor."

He made it halfway up the stairs before The Doctor's voice stopped him, "You really needn't worry about our friendship, you know?"

Rory frowned. "Pardon?"

"Amy and I," The Doctor clarified. "You don't have to worry about our relationship."

Rory's frown deepened. This was most definitely not something he wanted to discuss with The Doctor. Besides, Amy had proclaimed her love for him just moments ago. She _chose_ him. Whatever doubts he had about Amy wanting to marry him were now gone.

Weren't they?

"Trust me, I'm not worried."

The Doctor looked doubtful, his already furrowed brows furrowing even deeper. Rory rolled his eyes. "Alright, I was… _a little_ worried before, but that was before I saw you with—"

He stopped short, rethinking saying her name. He saw how badly The Doctor reacted when he thought she was dead and when he had to let her go to save everyone else. (Rory still didn't understand exactly what had happened _there_.) Honestly, he wasn't sure how The Doctor would react now.

To Rory's surprise, The Doctor's expression softened. His hunched shoulders relaxed slightly as a bittersweet smile spread across his face. He crossed his arms and lowered his gaze to the floor as he spoke.

"I was so alone when I met her," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I had just lost everything I had ever held precious to me and it left me... _broken_." The Doctor cleared his throat, not brave enough to lift his gaze to the man he was talking to. He didn't think he would be able to continue this story if he did. It was too much raw emotion for him to think about, let alone admit aloud. The Doctor swallowed and started again.

"She was…adventurous and pure and kind," he spoke softly. "and for some reason, she saw something good in me, something I didn't even see in myself…but I couldn't be with her, I…I knew I could never be good enough for her. I didn't deserve her." He cleared his throat again and ran his hands over his worn-out face.

To Rory, it seemed The Doctor had aged years just in the past few minutes of talking. His eyes were heavy with the weight of a thousand transgressions and the lines of his face were greatly exaggerated. It was easy to think of the man in front of him as young and immature when his face so obviously displayed it; it was times like this where Rory was so bluntly remined of the fact that The Doctor was indeed much older than he appeared.

"Doctor, if this is too much—"

"No, Rory," The Doctor interrupted sharply, finally looking directly at him. "I need to say this. I _need_ to."

Rory bit back his response and simply nodded.

"So, I sent her away from me. I sent her home so that she could have a normal, human life. I needed her to stay…alive…even if she couldn't be alive with me." He sighed deeply. "But she came back anyway. She saved my life, saved thousands of lives." His voice grew steadily softer, a wistful timbre as he thought back on the distant memory of a game station and wolf.

"And it wasn't until that moment when I realized I was still… _proud_ to be the man she was willing to save, even after everything I'd done. And I realized that I… _loved_ this girl."

That caught Rory's attention. He had heard The Doctor say those words before, mostly to Amy, even to himself from time to time, but never with such passion. It was a little off-putting to see such honesty from a man who spent most of his time goofing off like a twelve-year-old. If Rory had found it hard take The Doctor seriously before, he was most definitely listening now.

"She'd always manage to slip away from me, though." The Doctor chuckled, mirthless. "Somehow, we always found ourselves in a situation where I would have to leave her. But each time, she'd find her way back to me. And the love I had for her grew stronger every time she was with me. Each time, I swore I would finally tell her that I loved her, I was certain that I would…" his eyes darkened, whether from anger or sadness, Rory couldn't tell. "but I never did. I am, and always will be, Rory, a coward."

Rory was silent he wasn't sure how to respond to such an intrepid confession. The Doctor stood hunched over the console with his eyes closed. Rory considered silently slipping away to let him grieve alone. He probably wouldn't even notice if Rory were gone.

There was a soft sniffle as The Doctor brought a hand to his face and dried his eyes. Tears! Another marvel for Rory to witness.

"But you see, that's why I have to let myself love Amy so freely," The Doctor explained, his back still turned. "She is seared onto my hearts…the first face this face saw. She's my best mate," Rory smiled at that. "A friend I never thought I deserved. She means so much to me. And with her…with both of you, really…I don't feel so cowardly. I love Amy," he said emphatically, turning to face Rory straight on and starring him directly in the eye. "But she is not my rose, Rory. She's yours." That bittersweet smile returned to The Doctor's face, though this time there was a hint of joy in his eyes and a confident lift in his stance. "And I would _never_ take someone's Rose away from them."

Just as suddenly as the conversation began, The Doctor's expression changed to that pasted, overly-cheerful charm that it usually held. "Right! Well, best not to keep the missus waiting, eh? Off you pop!" he smiled and clapped Rory on the shoulders, giving him a gentle nudge in the direction of the stairs.

Rory, dumbfounded by the whirlwind of emotions he experienced and witnessed within the span of a few minutes, found himself being led to the stairs without a fight. He shook his head, clearing his muddled thoughts and remembered why he was going up the stairs in the first place.

Amy! Brash, bold, beautiful, fiancé Amy. Yes, he realized that even though she chose _him_ to love and to cherish forever, he had still worried about her friendship with The Doctor. How could he not? With all the inside jokes and the knowing looks; he had every right to be jealous, and no one could change his mind of the fact.

Standing at the top landing of stairs, Rory paused one last time to look at the man who had caused him countless headaches in the last twenty-four hours alone. The Doctor was dancing around the console, vigorously pushing and pulling various dials and switches, none of which made any sense to Rory. But then again, he wasn't really paying much attention to that. He was more focused on The Doctor's face.

He wasn't smiling or frowning really. His expression was neutral, focused on his task, yet it seemed (to Rory anyway) to hold a serene glow, perhaps of relief even. Like the weight of those thousand transgressions had finally been lifted off his shoulders.

Rory cleared his throat quietly, not wanting to disturb such a restful moment, but curious all the same. "Doctor?" he asked. "Sorry, it's just…I still don't understand. She was real…so why isn't she here?"

The Doctor's expression wavered only slightly, but he answered anyway. "She was never here," he said, his tone more clinical than his emotional confession from moments ago. "not really. She was just a shadow, a projection formed by psychic pollen. The real Rose is…stuck in a different universe, a parallel earth." He rubbed his neck. "But she's fine, she's safe, its just…a very long story."

Rory nodded. He still didn't fully understand what all had happened, but he knew that was all The Doctor was willing to say on the subject for now. And after everything The Doctor had already shared just to quell Rory's insecurities, Rory was actually fine not knowing.

"Well," said Rory, "maybe you'll tell it to me one day."

The Doctor smiled, knowing that Rory was really saying that if The Doctor ever needed to vent again, he would be there to listen. He chuckled softly. Humans. They never ceased to amaze him.

"Yes…maybe I will."

Rory nodded again, waved a little, then went to find Amy. Alone at last, The Doctor let out a deep breath.

He was properly tired. This whole escapade had taken a lot out of him. That nap Amy had mentioned was starting to sound very appealing. He would plot their course for Rio, then take a quick kip, he decided. Yes, they could all use a little R&R after everything. A vacation to The City of God is just what they needed. Plugging in the coordinates, The Doctor raised his gaze to the reflection he saw in the time rotor. In place of his own, the Dream Lord's face was staring back at him, with cold eyes and that menacing smile.

The Doctor turned away quickly. _It was just a trick of the light_ , he told himself. Sure enough, when he looked again, it was his own face he saw, but a frown formed. Because he knew, that even if the Dream Lord's form was gone, he was still there, inside him, festering in all his doubts and fears and insecurities.

He shook his head to clear it, thinking of his pink and yellow girl, the one thought that always calmed his troubled mind. His Rose. The TARDIS hummed in his mind.

"I know, old girl." The Doctor whispered to his ship with affection. "I miss her too."

With the coordinates plotted, The Doctor headed for his room with yet another sigh. He just hoped that wherever she was right now, whatever she was doing, she was happy.

A calm washed over him suddenly and he knew deep in his hearts, without a doubt, that she was.

 **Update: There will be an epilogue, people, so stick around! One more chapter to go!**


	13. Epilogue

" _If it's time to go, remember what you are leaving behind; remember the best…my friends have always been the best of me."_ —The Doctor

 **Epilogue**

That same night, a whole universe away, a startled cry pierced the air as a woman awoke from a nightmare. She shot up, her breath heavy as her nightshirt clung to her thin frame with sweat. Her husband startled awake, instantly wrapping his arms around her.

"What's wrong, Love?" he asked, concern shadowing his brow. "What happened?" he gave his wife a small shake when she didn't respond. "Rose?"

Hearing her name snapped her attention back to the present, and she turned to face her husband. She startled momentarily, thinking for a moment that his eyes were green and his hair was floppy. But _that_ didn't make any sense. She shook her head to clear away what must have been fragments of a dream.

"Sorry," she said softly, her throat dry. "'M okay, I just…I had a very odd dream."

Her husband, The Doctor (or James Noble, as he was known to the rest of the world), raised an eyebrow. "Really? Odd how?"

Rose frowned, trying to recall the cause of all this. She could only get bits and pieces: a playground, outer space, dangerous old people, biting cold, something ginger…but most of it was fading from her memory already. "I'm not really sure, but…I think at one point, I was on the TARDIS." She smiled at her husband. "And you were there, too! But you didn't look like you."

"Oh?" her Doctor asked, a smile forming on his face as he waggled his eyebrows. "Still handsome though, wasn't I?"

Rose chuckled. "I don't know, I don't really remember." She frowned again. "Why do dreams have to fade so quickly?"

The Doctor shrugged. "Because they're not real. Reality is better than any old dream."

Rose looked at her husband whose arms were now rubbing comforting circles on her back. His gravity defying hair was shorter than it used to be, but no less thick, a salt and pepper gray forming around his temples. His face was full, flushed warm with freckles splayed across his nose, and slight stubble on his cheeks. There were wrinkles forming at the edges of his eyes and mouth, proof of just how much he smiled and laughed.

He was beautiful.

And he was right. This reality, her life with him; it was better than anything she could ever dream of. It had been a good fifteen years or so with him, and she wouldn't trade it for anything. She kissed him deeply, combing her fingers through his tangled hair.

"I suppose there's no need to remember it then, huh?"

"Nope!" he answered jovially, kissing his Rose on her forehead. A glance at the clock told him it was 5:47. Almost time for them to get up, anyway. "Well, since we're already up, I'm going to make tea. Fancy a cuppa?"

She nodded, "Yeah, give me a mo', I'm gonna change first."

"M'kay," he pushed himself off their bed and rose to his feet, stooping to kiss her one more time. "Love you."

Her hear fluttered and she smiled. Ten years of marriage, and those words still made her blush.

"Love you too." She watched him until he disappeared down the hallway, presumably to the kitchen.

Sighing with content, Rose stood and peeled her sweaty night clothes off, heading to their master bathroom to freshen up. She riffled through her husband's t-shirts, settling on one that had 'I make horrible science puns, but only periodically' printed on the front. Her mother, Jackie, had given it to him for Christmas one year, and The Doctor wore it occasionally, enough to appease her anyway, but most of the time, Rose wore it to bed. It was soft, and it smelled like him; it comforted her.

She pulled the dark blue shirt over her head, then wrapped her hair into a messy bun, running the tap to splash some cold water on her face. It was refreshing, soothing the rest of her nerves. Toweling her face dry, Rose glanced her reflection in the mirror, but that's not what caught her attention. Her heart stopped as she swore she saw a short man in a bowtie leering at her over her shoulder.

Rose gasped and spun around and found the bathroom empty aside from herself. Turning back to the mirror, the strange man's reflection was gone as well. Rose let out a shaky breath, trying to slow her heartbeat. Her mind was still playing tricks on her, still caught up in her strange dream. A cup of tea was exactly what she needed.

Shuffling into the kitchen, she found The Doctor behind the bar, pouring freshly made tea into two matching mugs. As she took a seat at the bar stool, he placed her mug in front of her and took a seat beside her, clinking their mugs together.

"Cheers!" he winked and took a small, careful sip of his hot tea.

"Cheers." Rose echoed. She wrapped both hands around the steaming cuppa, letting the warmth and the aroma calm her.

The silence that followed was comfortable, not stifling. The couple sipped their tea, The Doctor wrapping an arm around her and Rose resting her head on his shoulder. After a few minutes more of the quiet, The Doctor asked, "Feeling better, Love?"

Rose nodded, placing her mug back down on the counter. "Much better, thank you."

"Mummy?" a small voice filled the air. They turned to see their eight-year-old daughter, Aurora, leaning over the back of the couch, her jim jams on and her purple stuffed elephant in her hands. "Daddy? What are you doing?"

The Doctor patted the stool next to him. "Have a seat, Ducky," he said, using his affectionate nickname for her. "we're having biscuits!"

The little girl's eyes widened and she grinned, showing off her missing front tooth. She turned to her mother expectantly. "Really?" she asked.

Rose sighed. The Doctor was giving her the same look their daughter was. He was waiting for her permission, she realized. " _One_ biscuit," she promised. "And a glass of milk. That's it."

"Yes!" bot The Doctor and Aurora cheered, and The Doctor lifted his daughter off the couch high into the air before plopping her down on the stool he had vacated beside her mother. He went back into the kitchen to retrieve the milk and the sweets.

Rose brushed the tangled mess of red hair (yes, she was ginger. The Doctor was absolutely _thrilled_ about that) out of her face. Aurora, Rory as she was called by her friends, (or Ducky, as her father called her), was their little miracle. They had adopted her as a baby, shortly after discovering they were unable to conceive on their own. Too much dimension hopping unprotected through the multiverse, and too much variance in their genetic codes, that's what The Doctor concluded.

The fact didn't sadden them for long, though. It was The Doctor in fact who suggested adoption. ' _Why not, Rose?_ ' he had said. ' _You want a child, I want a child, and there's millions of babies in the world who are sure to love us! Let's do this!_ '

So Aurora, this smiling, giggling, brilliant baby girl was brought into their world. She went to private school, generously picked out by grandad Pete, but The Doctor preferred to tutor her at home. She was exceptionally gifted, already learning at a level way beyond her years. The Doctor was even teaching her small amounts of Gallifreyan. She loved reading and science, building things and drawing. Bed times in the Tyler-Noble household usually consisted of Aurora telling _them_ bedtime stories, fanciful tales she invented, with illustrations included as well. Rose would expect nothing less of The Doctor's daughter.

"Here you go!" The Doctor enthusiastically set a plate with biscuits on the counter and handed Aurora a small glass of milk. "Breakfast of champions." He winked, and Aurora giggled. The Doctor took his seat next to his daughter. Reaching over her head, he gave Rose a short, sweet kiss on the cheek.

"Are Grandad and Nan coming to dinner tonight?" Aurora asked with a mouth full of cookie.

"They are. And your Uncle Tony's visiting from Uni, so he'll be here, too."

Aurora nodded happily. "Good! I miss Tony. We can play Space Cooks together!"

"As long as you play in the yard, Ducky." The Doctor warned, remembering the debacle that ensued the last time she played 'Space Cooks'. The wall paper in the dining room still had scorch marks.

Rose laughed softly at the memory. "And who exactly was the one who helped her invent 'Space Cooks', Doctor?" She pointed a finger at him lightheartedly.

"Oi, don't be cheeky, Rose Tyler!"

The phrase sparked an impossible memory in Rose's mind. A man, blurry and unclear, but his voice and the elation in it piercing and strong. _"Cheeky, Rose Tyler"_ , the memory had said the same thing.

" _That's me, breaking the tension with ill-timed humor"_ , her own voice was saying in response. But she couldn't place where this conversation had occurred or who it had been with. Was it even a memory? Something she just imagined, maybe? It felt so real, so solid. The voice seemed familiar, comforting even. _Safe_. And for a split second, she felt a gaping emptiness without it.

The second ended when The Doctor's voice broke her train of thought. "Alright, alright! We'll keep the Space Cooks craziness to a minimum, won't we, Ducky?" he ruffled Aurora's already tousled bed head.

"Absolutely!" she agreed with a gap tooth grin.

Rose smiled fondly at the both of them. Whatever the voice had been or meant to her, it was quickly fading. Her focus was on the present, a reality far greater than any dream she had ever had.

"Alright, you," she said, smoothing out her child's hair. "finish your milk, then why don't you start getting ready for school, yeah?"

Aurora did just that; finishing her milk, she set her glass in the sink over the counter and climbed down off the stool that was just as tall as her, bounding back to her room.

The Doctor chuckled as he watched her go, the laughter lines prominent on his face. "I'll go make sure she doesn't flood the loo with bubble bath again."

Jumping off his stool, with one hand balanced on the bar and the other wrapping around Rose's waist, he leaned down to give his wife a long, passionate kiss. It took her breath away. He whispered as they pulled apart, "Love you."

"Love you too," she reciprocated.

With a smile, he followed after their mischievous daughter. Rose sighed in content once more, ready to start this new day of her beautiful life. What had her Doctor said? Reality was better than any old dream?

Hearing her husband and her daughter animatedly laughing in the other room, she recognized that yes; it really was.

 _ **fin.**_


End file.
